A man from Humboldt Park has been accused of fatally shooting his ex-girlfriend’s new partner while the victim was waiting outside her home with her child nearby. The incident was captured on surveillance cameras, which also recorded the woman’s terrified screams as she witnessed the shooter fleeing and shouted his name, according to prosecutors on Sunday.
Jonathan Roldan, aged 35, faces a first-degree murder charge for the January 23 killing of Andrew Garay, who was in his car on the 3500 block of West Wabansia Avenue when he was shot.
The prosecutors’ detention filing indicates that Garay had been in a relationship with Roldan’s former girlfriend for four years. Roldan and the woman have two children together.
On the evening of the incident around 8 p.m., Garay picked up the woman from work, collected one of her children from a friend’s house, and drove them to her residence. Prosecutors stated that he dropped them off in front of the house and waited in his 2020 Nissan Murano for them to enter.
As they approached the front door, Roldan allegedly emerged from a gangway, moved to the grassy area between the sidewalk and the street beside Garay’s vehicle, and fired a single shot through the front passenger window. The shot struck Garay in the forehead and temple. His car rolled forward about two car lengths before stopping. Roldan then reportedly ran back into the gangway towards an alley.
A Ring camera purportedly recorded the murder and Roldan’s escape, while another camera captured audio of Garay’s partner exclaiming “Yoni!”—Roldan’s nickname—“what the f*** did you do? What the f*** did you do?” as he fled.
She called 911 and identified Roldan as the shooter on CPD bodycam footage, according to prosecutors. They noted that the woman had lent Roldan her white 2022 Jeep Compass before the shooting. License plate readers tracked the vehicle heading toward her home before the attack.
Judge James Murphy III has ordered Roldan to be held in custody pending trial. Prosecutors highlighted his previous conviction for animal cruelty.
In a GoFundMe campaign launched after Garay’s death, Samanth Knutt described him as “a kind-hearted man. He loved everyone. He was the kind of man to give you the shirt off his back even if it was the last thing he had. He had a personality that lit up any room he walked into. He was a hardworking and dedicated father.”
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