Associated Press
CHICAGO — Three Chicago teenagers have been charged with first degree murder in the beating death of a 62-year-old disabled man after the boys recorded the assault using a cellphone and posted it on Facebook, police said.
Delfino Mora, a father of 12, was attacked in an alley on the city’s North Side early Tuesday, and was found hours later by a passer-by, police said. Taken to St. Francis Hospital in Evanston in critical condition, he died Wednesday afternoon from blunt head trauma, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office. He had been collecting aluminum cans to earn money for his family.
Police said 16-year-old Malik Jones confronted Mora in the alley and asked him what he had in his pocket before punching him in the jaw. Mora, who did not have full use of his right arm after a construction accident several years ago, fell to the ground, hitting his head on the concrete.
Nicholas Ayala, 17, and 18-year-old Anthony Malcolm took turns to record the beating and the video was later posted to Jones’ Facebook account. In the video, a “crack” sound can be heard as Mora’s head hits the ground, Assistant Cook County State’s Attorney Sylvie Manaster said in court Sunday.
A police report said Jones is a member of a street gang, and has the words “Little Terror” tattooed on his left arm. Manaster said he confessed to punching Mora.
Jones was charged early Sunday, while Ayala and Malcolm were charged that evening.
“I don’t know how anyone can be that cold-hearted,” said Mora’s 20-year-old son, Emmanuel, who said he has had difficulty sleeping and has had nightmares since he watched the video.
“It feels to us like they’re making fun of my dad because he couldn’t defend himself,” Mora’s 17-year-old daughter, Angelique, said. “They think posting a violent video makes them look tough. It’s like they want to get famous.”
Jones’ mother, Monique Hendrix, cried when she heard that her son had been arrested and offered her condolences to Mora’s family. Hendrix described her son as a “known runaway” who has been in trouble with the law in the past.
Copyright 2012 Associated Press