CHICAGO, IL — Three people were shot to death and a fourth is in critical condition following a shooting at the Vera Lounge bar in Portage Park, according to video and reports.
Surveillance camera video captured the mass shooting that unfolded at around 2:30am Sunday during a birthday party for the niece of the bar’s owner.
USACRIME obtained aftermath video.
The niece was seriously wounded and her father, Ricky Vera, was killed. Two of the woman’s friends, Mario Pozuelos and Mercedes Tavares also died.
Ricky Vera, 50, and Mario Pozuelos, 26, were shot in the head and body and pronounced dead at the scene. Mercedes Tavares, 24, was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead, authorities said.
Mariah Vera, 25, rushed to her father’s side as the shooter opened fire at her birthday party. As she wept and tended to his wounds, the gunman walked up and shot her in her head. She was taken to the same hospital in critical condition, authorities said.
Police sources said the shooter stood over some of the victims and kept firing before taking off in a dark-colored SUV.
The mass shooting reportedly stemmed following a verbal confrontation that began in the Vera Lounge bar, in the 5500 block of West School Street early Sunday in Portage Park.
Samuel Parsons-Salas, 32, has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder and one count of armed kidnapping, police said on Tuesday afternoon. He allegedly drove away with a woman and held her against her will after the deadly shooting.