$10,000 reward offered for arrests in 2 separate homicides on Chicago's South Side

Chicago police detectives and Cook County Crime Stoppers were seen searching around the Woodlawn neighborhood on Saturday for new leads after a mom of five was murdered just a few weeks ago. 

They were also searching for answers in a separate homicide that also occurred on the South Side. At this point, no one has been arrested.

Paul Rutherford with Crime Stoppers, along with a half dozen detectives, was out on Drexel Street with one mission — to find more information, even if it's small.

The overall goal is to arrest the person or people accused of shooting and killing Kiara Jenkins, 36, nearly a month ago.

Chicago police said she was walking down an alley on her way to church around 4:30 a.m. on Sunday, Jan. 18, when she was shot and killed. CPD and Crime Stoppers were talking with neighbors, and putting flyers around the area with Jenkins'  picture on it to keep her investigation at the top of their minds.

"The best thing is when we talk to these residents, they are the eyes and ears of the community," Rutherford said.

A CBS News Chicago investigation discovered that Jenkins was found lying in this alley for 10 hours before police responded, even though an off-duty police officer called in the shots fired immediately after it happened.

"I feel the family deserves to know. Where were police? Where was the response?" an anonymous neighbor said.

The neighbor said none of the cameras in the alley picked up police arriving, even though police said they closed the call out at 5:08 a.m. that day. It wasn't until around 3 p.m. that surveillance cameras captured police showing up.

"If police had come in the area when the 911 call came in, they could have heard that, and maybe that would've made a difference," the neighbor said.

"We haven't heard nothing, we ain't really seen no family or nothing," another neighbor said.

Now, Crime Stoppers is offering a reward for any leads related to Jenkins' death.

"I know money is not going to bring her back, but it brings some closure to the family," Rutherford said.

As they continue to push for answers.

"Right now it's this homicide, tomorrow could be someone else's case," Rutherford said.

In addition to Jenkins' investigation, Crime Stoppers also visited the scene of an unsolved murder in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood.

Investigators went door-to-door here along South Hartwell Avenue looking for clues in a nearly three-year-old cold case.

The victim, Phillip Meadors, was shot to death at a house party back in April 2023.

A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to an arrest and conviction in both cases.