Feds Charge Jamel Danzy With Buying Gun Used In Fatal Shooting Of Chicago Police Officer

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Jamel Danzy of Hammond, Indiana has been hit with federal charges, accused of buying the gun that was used in the weekend shooting of two Chicago police officers.

Danzy, 29 is the alleged "straw purchaser" of the weapon that was used to fatally shoot officer Ella French and seriously wound her partner, who had pulled over a car in West Englewood on Saturday night.

Prosecutors say Danzy bought the gun in March from a gun dealer in Hammond and then gave it to an Illinois resident who had a criminal record and could not legally purchase a weapon. Danzy filed paperwork with the dealer stating that the gun was for himself.

The complaint included a photo of the weapon, a Glock Model 44, that investigators said was purchased and then used in the fatal shooting. Danzy also owned the car that was pulled over by French and her two partners, prosecutors said.  During questioning at a restaurant in Munster, Ind., where Danzy works, Danzy said he has been in a relationship with one of the suspects in the car and sometimes let the person drive the vehicle.

Three people who were in the car are in custody. One of the three, police said, fired the shots. Charges have not yet been filed in the case.

Officers with the Community Safety Team conducted a traffic stop around 9 p.m. near 63rd Street and Bell Avenue in West Englewood. Three people were in the car — two men and a woman. During the traffic stop, someone in the vehicle opened fire on police, who returned fire.

CBS 2 has learned at the time of the shooting, one officer was standing near the driver side door, the other near the passenger side door.