On October 3, 2024, 17-year-old Stephanie Lopez Ramirez was found dead in an apartment in the Humboldt Park area of Chicago, Illinois. She was identified as the victim of a shooting, with a gunshot wound to her left arm that penetrated to her chest, leading to her death at the scene.
The incident occurred around 12:30 PM in an apartment located in the 700 block of North Avers Avenue. The police responded to the scene and found Stephanie unresponsive with a single gunshot wound.
She was pronounced dead at the scene.
A person of interest in the case is Juan David Ramirez-Olivo, a 19-year-old male migrant who was in the apartment with Stephanie at the time of the shooting. Ramirez-Olivo, who is a Colombian national, claimed that the shooting was accidental. However, both Chicago Police Department (CPD) sources and a friend of the victim's family have questioned this claim.
Ramirez-Olivo was taken into custody and initially faced potential charges related to the shooting. However, the Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx's office declined to pursue any charges, citing "insufficient evidence" to meet the burden of proof. Despite this, CPD sources expressed dissatisfaction with the decision, suggesting that Ramirez-Olivo should at least be charged for illegally purchasing the gun used in the incident.
Ramirez-Olivo had a history of interactions with law enforcement, including an arrest in March for possession of a deadly weapon, a knife, and an accusation of previously stabbing someone. He had entered the United States under a parole program and was given a notice to appear. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had placed a detainer on him following his arrest for first-degree murder.
Stephanie Lopez Ramirez was described by those who knew her as a "very sweet girl who loved her family very much" and was "always happy and full of life." Her family, who had recently arrived in the United States seeking a better life, are now planning to send her body back to Colombia for burial. A GoFundMe page was set up to help cover the funeral expenses.
