UPDATE – Agent Killed Was A Soon-To-Be Father
CHICAGO (WLS) — A tow truck driver was killed on the job Friday morning in a shooting in the East Garfield Park neighborhood, Chicago police and the towing company said.
Jack Jacobson, 28, had just repossessed a black Land Rover, the company said. Soon after, he was shot to death in his tow truck after being ambushed by a large group of people, the company said.
The front windshield was riddled with bullet holes.
Jacobson worked for Northwest Recovery out of Rolling Meadows. The attorney for the company, Tom Glasgow, said they are trying to sort out the details of what happened, as re-possessions can sometimes be very dangerous for tow truck drivers.
“We don’t know if this was a random act if it was a directed action or if it was simply car thieves that saw someone turn the keys to a very expensive automobile over,” Glasgow said.
Police said the shots were fired in the 3000-block of West Fifth Avenue at around 1:30 a.m.
When police got there, they found Jacobson sitting inside the tow truck where he was pronounced dead on the scene.
Investigators are now pulling video from a city pod camera nearby and Glasgow said the tow truck was also equipped with several cameras.
“They provide a very wide swath of visual view for what occurs during a repossession and what happens after the repossession in order to protect our drivers,” Glasgow said.
Northwest Recovery employs many military veterans and Jacobson was no exception. He served in the U.S. Navy.
Jacobson was about to become a father. He and his fiancé were preparing for a baby shower this weekend. Now, his family is filled with unimaginable grief.
“He’s a great kid,” Glasgow said. “I just saw a tremendous kid who had a great personality and was always upbeat. It is such a tragic loss.”
Authorities said a handgun was recovered next to the victim, but police have not said if that gun was fired. It’s also unclear who that gun belonged to.
