Sandy MaloneChicago, IL – An off-duty veteran Chicago firefighter was shot multiple times on Thursday night as he was mowing his lawn on the Far South Side.
The incident occurred at about 6:45 p.m. on April 29 while the 54-year-old firefighter was chatting with friends near an alley in the 9900-block of South Yale Avenue in Fernwood, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Chicago Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said the suspect ran past the firefighter and his friends and opened fire on them, firing 13 shots.
The firefighter was struck in the ankle, buttocks, and right leg, but he pulled out his own legally-owned concealed weapon and returned fire, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Langford said the firefighter, who is assigned to a South Side firehouse, has a valid concealed-carry permit for his weapon.
Police said no one was hit by the firefighter’s bullets, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Officers responded to the scene quickly and chased the 25-year-old suspect on foot.
He was taken into custody and police recovered his coat and gun from a trash can near the scene of the incident, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Langford said the firefighter, who has been with the Chicago Fire Department since 1994, was transported to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was stabilized.
“He had multiple gunshot wounds to his lower extremities,” he said.
A Chicago Police Department spokesman told the Chicago Sun-Times that the suspect was released without having been charged.