Andre Thomas spent decades of his life working to steer people away from violence, rebuilding his own life to become a leader in the fight to make Chicago’s south suburbs safer. The 57-year-old Matteson, Illinois, resident was the CEO and executive director of Integrity & Fidelity, a community-based violence prevention organization he founded in 2021. Known as a dedicated and passionate advocate, he believed that investment and opportunity were key to reducing gun violence. “No one with a 40-hour job is going out and shooting and killing,” he once told a reporter. To his family, he was a loving father figure. His partner, Nita Ragland, said he was raising her 12- and 14-year-old children as his own. His loss left her struggling with how to explain that the only father they had ever known was gone. “Daddy’s not coming back,” she said.
“He’s gone.”
After serving time in prison, Andre had turned his life around, getting his start with the anti-violence organization Ceasefire before establishing Integrity & Fidelity. His group focused on the parts of the city and south suburbs most affected by gun violence, using trained "credible messengers" to intervene in conflicts before they could escalate to gunfire. He worked closely with law enforcement and took great pride in his mission. “Something that he took pride in, something that he loved doing,” Ragland recalled. His work was a calling, one that made his eventual fate a tragic irony. "Now that he's become a victim of what he's trying to prevent... it's crazy," his partner said.
On Halloween night, October 31, 2026, Andre spent the evening handing out candy before heading to his office. He was in the parking lot in the 400 block of West 14th Street in Chicago Heights, reportedly waiting for the rest of his crew to arrive. Around 9:24 p.m., a gunshot detection alert brought Chicago Heights police officers to the scene. They found Andre suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Surveillance footage from the area captured the final moments of his life, showing an individual walk up to his parked car, where the driver's side door was open and the headlights were on, and shoot him several times at close range.
Paramedics with the Chicago Heights Fire Department rushed Andre to a local hospital, but his injuries were too severe. He was pronounced dead at 10:02 p.m. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office later officially ruled his death a homicide. The brutal and targeted nature of the killing led Chicago Alderman David Moore to state that Andre was "reportedly assassinated." Moore called his death an "unimaginable loss, not only for his family, friends, and colleagues, but also for the countless individuals and communities whose lives he touched through his leadership, commitment, and service.”
The investigation into Andre Thomas’s murder was immediately launched by the Chicago Heights Police Department, which quickly requested assistance from the Illinois State Police and the South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force. Dozens of detectives were assigned to the case. In the days following the shooting, investigators went door-to-door at nearby businesses looking for evidence and additional surveillance footage. Police issued a public request for residents and business owners in the area to check their camera systems for any activity recorded between 9:15 and 9:30 p.m. on the night of the homicide.
In the wake of the tragedy, colleagues gathered at the scene, trying to comprehend the loss. Nita Ragland described her shock, saying, "This doesn't seem real... It's like I'm in a dream that's looping." Faith leaders and other violence prevention groups planned emergency meetings to address the impact of the shooting on the community Andre had served. As of early November 2026, police had not publicly identified any suspects or a motive in the killing, and no arrests had been made. The case remains a painful and unanswered question for a family and community robbed of a man who dedicated his life to peace. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Chicago Heights Detective Division at 708-756-6400.
