Police Officer Krystal Rivera

Krystal Rivera

Police Officer Krystal Rivera was shot and killed during a confrontation with an armed subject.

While on routine patrol at 9:50 p.m., officers attempted to stop a man they suspected of having a weapon at the 8200 block of South Drexel Avenue in the Gresham neighborhood. The subject fled, and officers pursued the subject into an apartment building, where another armed subject confronted them. During the chaotic encounter, an officer discharged his weapon, fatally striking Officer Rivera in the back.

Officer Rivera was placed into a patrol vehicle, but while en route to the hospital, the car experienced a mechanical malfunction and caught fire. She was transported in another vehicle and succumbed to her wounds at the hospital.

The two suspects fled the scene but were apprehended shortly thereafter. One of the men, a convicted felon wanted for six outstanding warrants, was charged with armed violence, illegal possession of a firearm, possession of a controlled substance, and possession of a fraudulent identification card. The second suspect, who was on parole, was charged with firearm possession by a felon and drug possession.

Her partner was relieved of his police powers as a result of a separate incident.

Officer Rivera had served with the Chicago Police Department for four years. She is survived by her daughter.