White male, Corey Allen Birlet was struck by a single gunshot while driving a silver Chevrolet Impala through a business parking lot along the 1500 block of North Neil Street.
An oncoming vehicle turned in from Edgebrook Drive; as the vehicles passed, an unidentified occupant of that other car fired into Corey Allen Birlet's Impala, hitting the 28-year-old male.
He accelerated away, heading west on Edgebrook, before losing consciousness and veering off the roadway, plowing through the front yard and garage of a nearby home and coming to rest against a neighboring property.
Officers and a concerned citizen rendered aid at the crash scene in the 200 block of Edgebrook Drive around 7:45 p.m.
The 28-year-old male was transported to Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana, where he was pronounced dead a short time later; funeral home records list the time as 8:27 p.m. and identify him as Corey A. Birlet of Champaign.
According to publicly posted memorial information, Corey Allen Birlet was a White/Caucasian male, age 28. The county coroner confirmed he died of a gunshot wound to the chest.
Investigators described the shooting as originating from the passing vehicle and emphasized that the shooter remained unidentified in the early phase of the case.
Police asked residents and businesses in the North Neil/Edgebrook area to review surveillance systems and submit any footage or tips that might capture the vehicles or the moment when the unidentified occupant fired into the Impala.
The 28-year-old male victim's car-to-house crash described by police was also documented in local reports that day.
As of the initial public releases and local coverage on August 25, 2021, no arrests had been announced in connection with the killing of 28-year-old male Corey Allen Birlet, and the suspect was described only as an unidentified person in the other vehicle.
Authorities continued to solicit information through the department and Crime Stoppers while the investigation remained open.
Leaving not only the victim Corey Allen Birlet's family and friends, but the surrounding community as well, demanding answers for the loss of another young life to gun violence.
