Suspect charged in shooting of Jewish man found dead in hospital

The man accused of shooting and wounding an Orthodox Jewish man in a targeted attack before firing on responding police and paramedics died in custody Saturday afternoon, the Cook County Sheriff's Office said.

Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi, 22, an immigrant from Mauritania in northwest Africa, died Saturday, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

Sheriff’s staff were conducting routine security checks in Cermak Health Services — where Abdallahi was being held — at 3:30 p.m. and discovered Abdallahi unresponsive in an “apparent suicide attempt by hanging” in his cell, according to the Cook County Sheriff’s Office. He was taken to Mt. Sinai Hospital, where he died. Sheriff's officials said no foul play was suspected and that no risk of suicide had been detected beforehand.

The Illinois State Police Public Integrity Task Force is conducting an independent investigation, according to the sheriff's office. Abdallahi had been hospitalized with multiple gunshot wounds after a shootout with police who arrived at the shooting scene, and at one point had been on a ventilator days after the attack.

Ald. Debra Silverstein (50th) — in whose ward the shooting occurred and who has said she attends the same synagogue as the victim — said she was hoping Abdallahi's death would help calm nerves in a neighborhood that's been "reeling" since the shooting.

She said she was also hopeful his death wouldn't close the investigation into Abdallahi's alleged motives and background.

“My community has been on edge for quite some time … [so] I hope this will bring a small measure of closure,” Silverstein told the Sun-Times on Sunday night. “But we would still like to find out all the details about what happened."

At a detention hearing Nov. 22, prosecutors said Abdallahi mapped the locations of several Chicago synagogues and Jewish schools in the days leading up to an attack in the North Side’s West Ridge neighborhood where he shot an Orthodox Jewish man and fired at police and paramedics on Oct. 26. He had also been facing charges of attempted murder, aggravated discharge of a firearm at a peace officer or firefighter, aggravated discharge of a firearm and terrorism.

The 39-year-old victim was walking to a synagogue about 9:30 a.m. in the 2600 block of West Farwell Avenue when Abdallahi, who was following him, opened fire, striking the victim in the shoulder, police said. As paramedics were rendering aid to the victim, and officers were looking for the shooter, police say Abdallahi emerged from an alley and fired shots at the officers, hitting a Chicago Fire Department ambulance.

Abdallahi continued to fire at officers multiple times from different locations as officers returned fire, police said. He was shot multiple times, taken into custody and transported to St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, where he was initially listed in critical condition.

Abdallahi had lived in the U.S. for “at least two years” and worked at an Amazon warehouse, Assistant Public Defender Josh Thigpen said at the Nov. 22 hearing, where Judge Susana Ortiz ordered Abdallahi detained.