CHICAGO — A tow-truck driver who was fatally shot Sunday night was just blocks away from his home when the shooting occurred, according to a friend of the victim.

No one is in custody following the Near West Side shooting.

Edwin Rivera is the manager of ASAP Towing and Recovery.

“I lost a friend. I lost a great friend over stupidity,” Rivera said. “The guy didn’t do anything. He was just on his way home. He was only three minutes, seven blocks away from his house.”  

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He, like many others, woke up to the shooting death news of their friend who worked as an independent contractor for the company. According to Rivera, the shooting victim had started at the company five days earlier but had been in the towing industry for many years.   

“For over 20 years, he’s been towing,” Rivera said.

According to police, the 49-year-old tow truck driver was heading westbound in the 1900 block of West Fulton Street around 10:45 p.m. when he was fatally shot in the armpit and later crashed into a bus stop.

Unknown individuals in two different cars began shooting at the victim and fled, police added.

“He obviously didn’t deserve this,” Rivera said. “Just like all the innocent kids that got killed and get shot don’t deserve this. What we do deserve is for our city to come out and defend us and look after the people who work and do something right for the city.”

Rivera says the violence has forced him to take his own measures of precaution when working.  

“Every single day, I’m in a tow truck. I don’t even listen to music no more, so I can listen for gunshots because they’re out there, constantly out there,” Rivera said.

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Police say the suspects fired shots from two different vehicles but did not describe the shooters or the cars at this time.