Is a serial killer stalking the North Side of Chicago?

[Prairie Gates]

In 2018, on consecutive days, two men were shot to death randomly by a man in a ski mask, just blocks apart in the North Side Chicago neighborhood of Rogers Park. No motive was discernible. The masked killer was spotted by surveillance cameras strolling down the street. His gait was notable: his feet sort of faced outward as he walked, so he has been named the Duck Walk Killer.

He was never caught and no suspect has been identified. The two murders were linked by ballistics: they were reportedly committed with the same weapon.

Last night, a man in a ski mask approached a group of Loyola students who were taking a walk on the beach. He opened fire on them, killing an 18 year-old Loyola freshman. He then left the scene. No motive has been named by the police, but the crime appears random. Moreover, last night's shooting, according to reports, happened at the end of Pratt Boulevard in Rogers Park (Loyola Beach) just a few hundred yards from the one of the 2018 murder sites.

So far, no police statements or news coverage has connected last night's shooting to the 2018 killings.

[bamagal62]

1. I remember the 2018 murders

In Rogers Park. I lived one neighborhood over in Andersonville. I did not realize no one had been caught. Scary.

[Melon]

3. What does the second shooting have to do with the first outside of location?

I thought he’d be duck walking out of there or something. There are 700 murders a year in Chicago. This seems very tenuous at best without a real link.

[bamagal62]

4. Agree. Seems odd

Unless there are other similar murders.

[Prairie Gates]

5. Not a lot, but some

On Edit: There were three shootings - the first two took place on consecutive days in 2018, and are connected by ballistics; the third took place on around 1:30 am on March 19. I'm not sure what you mean by the first and the second. The first two (in 2018) are absolutely connected by CPD as being the same shooter based on surveillance camera video and ballistics.

The similarities are 1) the location - these three killings each took place very close to each other; 2) a lone shooter on foot wearing a ski mask; 3) seemingly completely random.

Chicago has 700 murders a year, but most of those are gang related and/or related to some secondary crime (i.e., a robbery). Random shootings are relatively rare, in Chicago as elsewhere. This doesn't mean that random people don't get hit by gunfire, but for a gunman to approach and shoot specific people with no seeming motive is rare everywhere, including in Chicago. I understand that it's common to slander Chicago as some violent hellhole, especially among the right wing, and Chicago certainly has its problems, but random Son of Sam type shootings are not, despite what Hannity might tell you, common at all. This is a top-level news story in Chicago.

The larger neighborhood of Rogers Park certainly has some gang-related violence, but I don't know if a group of Loyola students has ever been shot at like this in recent memory.

Now for the differences: in the previous two shootings, the killer targeted a middle-aged to older man, in both cases, alone. The killer in this case targeted a group of students, including women (the victim is a woman).

[EdmondDantes_]

6. Location is the only real connection

A ski mask isn't really a trademark or a distinguishing factor by itself. Were the first two murders a guy walking up to a group of people and opening fire or killing an individual who was alone? Did the recent killer have a duck walk? Was it the same gun? Seems like jumping to conclusions.

[Prairie Gates]

8. Yes, it's early days

I realize my post was long, but I did say this:

Now for the differences: in the previous two shootings, the killer targeted a middle-aged to older man, in both cases, alone. The killer in this case targeted a group of students, including women (the victim is a woman).

A skimask is certainly not a distinguishing factor, but a skimask shooting without an attempted robbery is at least notable. It's a similarity. You say not distinguishing, and I say it's at least notable.

Was it the same gun? We don't know. The police haven't made any comment.
Did the shooter have the same gait? We don't know. The police haven't made any comment.

There is no conclusion: my post posed a question. It's right there in the title.

For me, a murder by a guy on foot wearing a skimask and shooting people seemingly at random about 300 yards from where a guy on foot wearing a skimask randomly shot somebody in 2018 which was itself only a few blocks from where we know the same guy did the same thing the day before at least raises the question.

[Melon]

7. I get you. The first two absolutely. Last one.....

It’s really….nothing. Or nothing much. The shooting before were 8 years ago. That’s a long time. The guy had a ski mask…but ski masks are cool weather uniform in the same gang areas in Chicago. And out of 700 murders, there are random shootings. Some sets of the Crips used to be notorious for making new members assault or murder a random person to get in.

It just seems totally tenuous to me. Maybe there’s something. But at least the check the casings of the third shooting( which I’m sure they have) and prove a match or link some video with the duck walk. This is really nothing.

[Prairie Gates]

9. "Some sets of the Crips used to"

Oh for God's sake.

Rogers Park has some gang activity but is not a gang area. Gangs don't actually go around shooting people randomly for initiation. Come on. What's next - don't flash your high beams at cars?

It may well be nothing, but we do have an unsolved random murder that seems to have taken place less than twelve hundred feet from a very similar murder that we know was part of a series. So, the question in legitimate.

[Melon]

10. No it's not. It's linking nothing together 8 years apart

And creating a fictional narrative for a story.
The link to casings isn’t posted because it doesn’t exist. They test and it’s different. No duck walk. Nothing. Rogers park is not all safe. 50000 people and relatively high crime and 6 murders a year. That maybe safe for Chicago….

[Prairie Gates]

11. "They test and it's different. "

Are you saying that the police have tested the casings and made statements about them? Do you have a link to that?

I've been pretty clear: there has been almost no information released on this murder yet. We have no surveillance footage or bullet casings that I've heard of.

I did notice your little "That maybe (sic) safe for Chicago..." It's not at all clear why that was necessary, but given the odd fantasy of gang initiation killings, I think I know where this is heading.

Have a nice evening.

[Coventina]

12. You have the patience of a saint!

[bamagal62]

13. All I know is I lived in the area when the guy got shot

Walking his dog. We’re talking, maybe 4 blocks from me. Although Roger’s Park is not the safest neighborhood, you don’t expect a shooting of a neighbor walking his dog. Those of us that lived in the area were a bit spooked by it all. We were hyper vigilant while walking our dogs. It was not a common thing to happen, even in Rogers Park. So the 700 murders in Chicago is not an “explanation” for these unusual, random shootings. Both Andersonville and Rogers Park are lovely neighborhoods, with neighbors that all know and support each other. It’s an historic area of Chicago that has beautiful historic properties with homeowners and neighbors that protect the historic area. My whole neighborhood, Lakewood Balmoral, is on the National Register of Historic Places.
It’s NOT a gang area.
It’s actually a really diverse area of Chicago. It has million dollar homes next to old historic apartment buildings. It’s a wonderful neighborhood that combines a mix of socioeconomic groups.

[Prairie Gates]

17. Thank you for the lovely and accurate description of the neighborhood(s)

[Cha]

14. I see what you mean... "a.. coincidence..." ?

I bet the Detectives are taking a look at it the similarities. Just because the Victims were 2 middle aged men before doesn't mean the Killer would stick to that.

Could be another crime of opportunity by a fucked up serial killer.

Are there any links with this story? TY!

I'm so Sorry about the Loyola student.

[muriel_volestrangler]

15. "Police said the young woman was not the intended target"

That's in https://abc7chicago.com/post/chicago-shooting-woman-18-shot-killed-walking-friends-loyola-university-police-say/18734271/

Slightly odd to say that when the motive is unclear. But it implies they didn't think it was truly random - the shooter must have done something to make people think he was targeting one or more other people.

[Prairie Gates]

16. I don't interpret it that way

Last edited Fri Mar 20, 2026, 09:09 AM - Edit history (1)

I think they mean that the woman was not singled out in the group, but rather that the shooter was shooting randomly at the entire group and just happened to hit her rather than somebody else.

I don't think 'not the intended target" in this context means that they know a motive. Indeed, I think it's the opposite.

I agree it's ambiguous and poorly worded either by CPD or the news.

In this CBS Chicago story, police say it was random: "Police said she was shot in the head and died at the scene. Investigators said it appears to have been a random shooting."