Two Teenagers Charged With Murder After Chicago Carjacking Shooting Spree

Marquese D. Hill, 18, was charged with multiple felonies including two counts of first-degree murder after an early-morning string of carjackings and shootings that left two men dead on Feb. 11. The Chicago Police Department posted a detailed list of counts tied to Hill and a juvenile suspect and said the arrests followed a coordinated investigation across city and federal units.

The second defendant is a 17-year-old male juvenile who has been identified in some court filings and reporting as Marshawn Sanders, 17; other outlets withheld the juvenile’s name because of his age. Court records and reporting show both defendants face first-degree murder charges and a slate of aggravated vehicular hijacking and firearms-related counts.

Chicago police listed the most granular enumerations of charges in a department Facebook post: Hill is charged with two felony counts of first-degree murder; three felony counts of aggravated vehicular hijacking with a weapon; one count of attempted aggravated vehicular hijacking with a weapon; one count of aggravated battery of a police officer; two counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm at an occupied vehicle; and two counts of aggravated vehicular hijacking of a handicapped person, among items in the posted list. The juvenile’s charges in the CPD post include two counts of first-degree murder, three counts of aggravated vehicular hijacking with a weapon, one attempted aggravated vehicular hijacking with a weapon, and two counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm at an occupied vehicle.

The victims were named as Darwin Tirado, 22, and Damon Kellum, 45. The Sun-Times reported Tirado was sitting in a parked car with a friend just before 4 a.m. on the 700 block of West Waveland Avenue in Lake View after leaving a nearby tavern when he was attacked. Prosecutors told the Tribune the incidents unfolded as a 90-minute citywide crime spree that left two men dead; the Sun-Times said the victims were killed about an hour apart.

Reporting and court documents place the spree beginning in Lakeview and continuing south along the Dan Ryan Expressway. The Tribune described the pair traveling to the 8600 block of South Lafayette Avenue, where they carjacked a 2025 Chevrolet Malibu stopped at a traffic light, leaving a Nissan behind; that Malibu driver was not harmed, and the stolen Malibu was later recovered in Gary.

Investigators tracked Hill and the juvenile using a network of public and private surveillance, including video of the suspects’ bus and train ride to Lakeview, prosecutors said. The CPD post credited Area Three Detective Division Homicide Team, Citywide Robbery Task Force, Area Technology Centers, the Public Transportation Section, the Forensic Services Division, the Crime Gun Intelligence Center, the U.S. Marshals Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force, the FBI Violent Crimes Task Force, and the Illinois Secretary of State Police among partners in the investigation. “These offenders were identified and arrested because of the tireless work by multiple units across the Chicago Police Department and its law enforcement partners,” the CPD post said.

Arrests and initial court proceedings followed over the weekend after the Feb. 11 attacks, with Cook County Judge James Costello ordering both defendants held in custody pending trial at a detention hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building, court records show. Trib un e and Block Club reporting say Hill was on crutches at the time of his arrest and faces an additional charge of aggravated battery of a police officer after officers alleged he struck them and hit them with his crutches; Block Club reported the State’s Attorney’s Office is seeking to try the 17-year-old as an adult.

Prosecutors characterized the pattern of offenses as senseless and without gain, saying the teens “engaged in a 90-minute citywide crime spree last week that left two men dead without any clear benefit.” Chicago police added that detectives and partner agencies “worked diligently and expeditiously to connect these incidents and arrest the offenders before they could hurt anyone else.” Both suspects remain held in custody pending the next court dates as charging documents and further court proceedings move forward.