Adarius Hayes, a 21-year-old African American male, was found dead in a car on August 5, 2015, in the 7500 block of South Damen Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. Hayes, a member of the Killer Ward Gangster Disciples, had been shot in the chest. His death marked the beginning of a violent gang rivalry in the Auburn Gresham community, which later culminated in the murder of nine-year-old Tyshawn Lee.
The Killer Ward Gangster Disciples, to which Hayes belonged, were at war with the Bang Bang
Gang, a faction of the Terror Dome gang, itself an offshoot of the Black P Stones. Hayes' murder was the first in a series of violent incidents that claimed the lives of both innocent victims and gang members. The Chicago Police identified Pierre Stokes, Tyshawn Lee's father, as a documented gang member of the Killer Wards, along with his relative, Christopher Smith. However, neither Stokes nor Smith cooperated with the investigators.
In the aftermath of Hayes' murder, the police raided Smith's home, but no charges were filed. The Crusader obtained exclusive information suggesting that Stokes knew the circumstances leading to his son's murder. Stokes, known by his street name "Wooh Gotti," posted a video on social media in September showing him, Smith, and two other men, believed to be Killer Ward members, mercilessly beating a young man they believed to be affiliated with the Bang Bang Gang. The video, which was taken down shortly after Tyshawn's murder, showed Stokes and the others kicking, stomping, and punching the victim, who was pleading for mercy.
The gang rivalry continued to escalate, with Tracey Morgan, a member of the Bang Bang Gang, being murdered on October 13, 2015. Morgan's mother was also injured in the shooting, which took place just minutes after Morgan attended a gang "call-in" meeting designed to reduce violence. These meetings offered gang members social services and other forms of assistance for those who chose to leave the lifestyle, as well as informing them of the consequences if they did not.
The violent feud between the Killer Ward Gangster Disciples and the Bang Bang Gang, sparked by the murder of Adarius Hayes, led to a series of tragic events that deeply affected the Auburn Gresham community. The ongoing investigations and lack of cooperation from key individuals have made it challenging for law enforcement to bring those responsible to justice.
