Lil Reese Grazed in Eye by Bullet, Tells Police He Was Trying to Buy Weed – Report
More details in the shooting of Chicago rapper Lil Reese are coming to light.
Reese, born Tavares Taylor, was shot during a shootout on Sat., May 15. He was hit by bullets along with two other individuals in a parking garage on 6 West Grand Ave. in Chicago. Initially believed to be shot in the thigh, an incident report from the Chicago Police Department confirms the rapper was instead grazed in the eye during the shooting.
New details appear to spell out a motive for the incident. The shooting seems to have been triggered by a dispute over a stolen vehicle, according to a report by Chicago Tribune, released on May 15.
Prior to the shooting, a man reported his Dodge Durango had been stolen. With the use of a GPS tracking device, the owner tracked the vehicle down to the location of the Grand Plaza Parking garage in downtown Chicago. The owner told police he tried to detain the occupants of the vehicle when someone started shooting, hitting the Durango and causing it to crash. Police sources tell the newspaper the occupants of the vehicle then got out and exchanged gunfire with someone. Police discovered two guns in the vehicle.
According to the report, Reese told the police he met the people in the Durango in order to buy marijuana. The other two victims were not cooperative in the investigation and have only been identified as a 20-year-old man and a 27-year-old man. The 27-year-old man was struck multiple times in his body and transported, along with Reese, to Northwestern Hospital and initially reported in critical condition. The 20-year-old man was struck twice in the knee and transported to John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County and is listed in good condition. Reese's condition has been listed as fair.
Video of the aftermath of the incident taken from a nearby building shows police arriving on the scene and assessing the situation. There is another clip making its rounds on the internet that shows Reese bleeding from the mouth while being assisted by an officer who is radioing in an ambulance. The person taking the video accuses the 28-year-old rapper of stealing her car as he struggles to stay conscious.
Contrary to previous reports, no suspects are in custody at this time, according to a CPD incident report.
XXL has reached out to the Chicago Police Department and Lil Reese's team for comment.
This is the second time in less than two years that Reese has been the victim of a shooting. In November of 2019, he was shot while driving on Pulaski Road and 167th Street when witnesses say a gunman opened fire on Reese with an automatic weapon after chasing him down in a car. Reese was shot in the neck but was transported to the hospital by a passerby and recovered a short time later.
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