Illinois This article is more than 8 months old

Illinois man using leaf blower in yard allegedly shot dead by neighbor

This article is more than 8 months old

Ettore Lacchei, 79, arrested and charged with first-degree murder over death of William Martys, 59, in Antioch, north of Chicago

An Illinois man using a leaf blower in his yard was killed by his neighbor, local television reported.

William Martys, 59, was reportedly using his leaf blower in his yard in Antioch when his neighbor, 79-year-old Ettore Lacchei, got into an argument with him then shot him in the head.

Lacchei was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder.

A neighbor told WLS, Chicago’s ABC affiliate, the two men had a history, and Lacchei had pulled a gun on Martys before.

“No one deserves anything like that, and it’s just kind of crazy to think someone can just break like that over just a simple argument that can be fixed just talking,” the neighbor, JR McCarty, told the station.

Martys’ death comes amid a string of shootings in which people have been harmed or killed over trivial matters.

Ralph Yarl, a 16-year-old Black teenager, was shot by an 84-year-old white man in Kansas City, Missouri, earlier this month after accidentally knocking on the wrong door. The man, Andrew Lester, pleaded not guilty to two felony charges.

In New York state, a 20-year-old white woman was shot and killed when she accidentally turned into the wrong driveway. The man who shot her, 65-year-old Kevin Monahan, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder.

In Texas, two high school cheerleaders were also shot after one accidentally got into the wrong car. The shooter, Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr, faces a third-degree “deadly conduct” felony charge.

From Illinois, William Martys’ daughter, Jacquelyn Martys, told the Washington Post her family was trying to deal with a “tremendous loss”. She had no further comment.

“Our condolences go out to the family and friends of William Martys, who was senselessly murdered,” said the Lake county sheriff, John D Idleburg.

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