84-year-old Sterling resident shot dead by 16-year-old

A 16-year-old boy has been taken into custody for the alleged murder of an 84-year-old Whiteside County man.

On April 18th, 2022 at approximately 9:04 a.m., a 911 call was received by the Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office reporting shots fired with a possible victim in the 2000 block of Hickory Hills Road, Sterling.

It was further reported that the suspect, a 16-year-old male family member, had fled the residence on foot while armed with a shotgun, according to a Tuesday release from Whiteside County Sheriff John F. Booker.

The victim, 84-year-old Jaime P. Garcia, was located inside the residence by responding deputies, deceased from an apparent gunshot wound. An autopsy is scheduled for today in Rockford.

At approximately 9:34 a.m., the juvenile suspect was taken into custody in the 2000 block of Ridge Road.  A shotgun was subsequently recovered along the suspected flight path taken by the juvenile offender. The juvenile was detained at Mary Davis Juvenile Detention Center pending further court proceedings.

The Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office was assisted at the scene by the Illinois State Police, the Illinois Department of Conservation Police, the Sterling Police Department, Sterling Fire, Rock Falls, and Milledgeville Fire Departments, CGH EMS, the Whiteside County Coroner’s Office, and the Whiteside County State’s Attorney’s Office.

Anyone with information related to this investigation is asked to call the Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office at 815-772-4044 or Whiteside County Crime Stoppers at 815-625-7867.