The execution-style killing of a 31-year-old man, whose body was found with handcuffs dangling from the wrists and tape across the eyes in an abandoned South Side garage, could be linked to ”chop shop” operations in the area, police said Sunday.
Darrell Johnson, of 5214 1/2 S. Drexell Blvd., was shot twice in the back of the head and three times in the chest, said Wentworth Area Detectives Michael O`Connor and Steve Warner. Heavy electrical tape had been wound around Johnson`s head, covering his eyes. Broken handcuffs dangled from his wrists, detectives said.
Johnson`s body was found early Saturday in a dilapidated 10-car garage at 4601 S. Woodlawn Ave. by a Prairie Avenue District patrolman checking for stolen cars and chop-shop activity, O`Connor said.
Police said the area where Johnson`s body was found is used by street gangs and freelance car thieves to hide and strip stolen automobiles. However, no stolen cars or stripping equipment were found in the garage.
”Johnson could`ve been killed for a variety of reasons,” O`Connor said. ”It could`ve been revenge, a territorial dispute or robbery. We don`t know. But it was an execution.”
