Family of Krystal Cruz, fatally shot while driving in Back of the Yards, speaks for first time

For the first time, we're hearing from the family of a mother of four who was shot and killed in the city's Back of the Yards neighborhood.

They say they're devastated at the loss of Krystal Cruz, 26, who leaves behind four young daughters.

She was in a car with her teen brother and his friend when it was shot at earlier this week. The family is still shocked by what happened.

"She loved us very much, and, you know, she was always happy. She was always happy," said Stella Hernandez, grandmother.

Hernandez said Cruz was a single mother and did her best to raise her children.

"Unfortunately, this happened, and now her four little girls are left behind," she said. 

Around 3:30 p.m. on May 5, Cruz was driving her 16-year-old brother and her brother's 18-year-old friend home from school when police say a motorcycle with two people pulled up next to them, took out guns, and fired them. A nearby doorbell camera recorded the sound of the moment it happened.

Cruz was hit in the back by the gunfire and was pronounced dead at the hospital.  Her brother and his friend were taken to hospitals and are recovering.

"I was devastated. I didn't know what to do or what to say," Hernandez said.

She says friends and community members are coming together to support the family with funeral expenses and ways to help Cruz's daughters. 

"There's still good people in this world," Hernandez said.

The loss of this mom of four felt especially deep, days before Mother's Day. Hernandez said the day will be a tough one to process, especially for Cruz's children.

"It's going to be very hard because they came to me yesterday saying to me, 'Grandma! grandma! Look at what I'm doing for my mom for Mother's Day. It just broke my heart," she said.

Through devastating pain and challenges ahead, the family says they will persevere.

"We will get through it. With God's help, we will," Hernandez said.

Chicago police say the investigation into the shooting remains ongoing. So far, no arrests have been announced.