Chicago Heights Police Seek Footage in Death of Violence Advocate
Investigators ask for recordings from Oct. 31 as community mourns Andre Thomas, killed just hours before a memorial service in Englewood.
By Leila Mansour ·
Andre Thomas, a 57-year-old Matteson resident and CEO of the community violence intervention group Integrity & Fidelity, died from gunshot wounds sustained on Halloween night. Chicago Heights police responded to the 400 block of West 14th Street at 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 31, after a gunshot detection alert triggered the call. Officers found Thomas injured on the scene and transported him to a hospital, where he later died. The investigation into the shooting remains open.
The Chicago Heights Police Department is asking residents and local business owners to review security camera footage from the 9:15 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. window on Oct. 31. The department requests that anyone with information contact the Detective Division at 708-756-6400 to assist investigators in solving the homicide.
Friends, family, and local leaders gathered in the West Englewood neighborhood on Thursday to honor Thomas and his work. Ald. David Moore, who represents the city's 17th Ward, described the loss as affecting the entire Englewood community. Moore stated that local leaders relied on Thomas to connect with residents and quell tensions. "He saved other people's families, other people's lives," Moore said.
Thomas led Integrity & Fidelity, an organization focused on reducing gun violence in Chicago and the south suburbs. Mark Saint, the interim executive director of the group, said the organization remains committed to Thomas's vision of replacing gunfire with the sound of children laughing. "Although he is no longer with us, his vision is with us, and his legacy will be even greater than his life," Saint said.
Outside the organization's West Englewood headquarters, attendees lit candles and released balloons to remember Thomas. Crystal Toran, a local justice reformer, spoke about the organization's core principles. "To Dre, Integrity & Fidelity was about staying true to the motto, staying true to the vision and the mission of the work, and staying true to the core principles that make you YOU," Toran said.
Moore noted that much of Thomas's work was conducted quietly and that he stopped numerous shootings that did not make public records. "Those things you cannot quantify, those things you cannot measure," Moore said. "But when people are doing the work, you just have to trust them. A lot of people say that, but he was doing the work."
