Man, 31, shot and killed in Dollar Tree parking lot in Joliet, Illinois, identified
An investigation is underway after a man was shot and killed in a Dollar Tree parking lot in Joliet, Illinois, early Sunday morning.
Joliet police said just before 2 a.m., an officer in the area heard multiple gunshots coming from the nearby Dollar Tree parking lot in the 2900 block of Colorado Avenue.
Police said officers immediately responded and found a man suffering from a gunshot wound to the head. He was taken by the Joliet Fire Department to St. Joseph Medical Center, where he was later pronounced dead.
The Will County Coroner's Office identified the victim as 31-year-old Aaron Lee Vidales Jr. of Joliet. The office said an autopsy was performed on Sunday, and the final cause and manner will be determined following the autopsy, police, and toxicological reports.
Multiple spent shell casings and a handgun were recovered in the parking lot. Two unoccupied vehicles and a nearby dispensary were also hit by gunfire.
Friends of Vidales were at the scene to remember the 31-year-old.
"I was just lighting a candle for my late friend AJ, who tragically lost his life inside this parking lot, unfortunately," said Gregory Amos.
When Amos heard his high school friend had died, he said he felt the need to pay his respects.
Friends say Vidales was at Anthony's Restaurant and Pub next door before. A manager there said his employees are still shaken after hearing gunshots.
"AJ he was a ball of fun. He was reserved, but also he was a person that showed love to a lot of his friends," Amos said.
"It's going to be hard because we started working in like a week apart, so that was my little buddy," said Sparkle Mabery.
She says she worked with Vidales at a trucking logistics company, and that he worked six days a week and was supposed to be there on Sunday morning.
"He was real respectable and like a workaholic, for real," she said.
While police search for who shot Vidales, his friends hope whoever ran off is held accountable.
"I feel for his dad, his mom, his siblings. It's a sad situation," Mabery said.
"I just pray that justice is served," Amos said.
No arrests have been made, and the investigation into the shooting remains ongoing.
Anyone with video footage or information related to the shooting is asked to contact the Joliet Police Department Investigations Division at 815-724-3020. Those wishing to remain anonymous may contact Will County Crime Stoppers at 800-323-6734 or submit a tip online at crimestoppersofwillcounty.org.