Police are investigating after 16-year-old Alejandro Garcia was found shot near 22nd Avenue and Adams Street and later died.
BELLWOOD, IL — Authorities have identified a 16-year-old Villa Park boy who died after he was found shot Tuesday afternoon in Bellwood, where callers reported that the teenager had been thrown from a vehicle.
Alejandro Garcia was identified by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office, according to local reports. Bellwood police said officers responded to the area of 22nd Avenue and Adams Street at about 3:20 p.m. Tuesday and found a juvenile suffering from a gunshot wound. Garcia was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Police said three people have been taken into custody as investigators work to determine what happened before the shooting. Authorities had not announced charges or publicly identified those being held as of the latest available update.
Callers who contacted authorities reported that the teenager had been shot and thrown out of a car. Police have not publicly detailed the circumstances surrounding that account or said where the shooting itself occurred. Investigators also have not announced a possible motive.
The Bellwood Fire Department transported Garcia from the scene to a local hospital after officers found him wounded. Officials initially described the victim only as a juvenile, and his name and age were released later after he was identified as Garcia, a Villa Park resident.
Detectives remained at the scene Tuesday evening processing evidence and interviewing multiple witnesses, police said. Authorities have not released details about what investigators recovered or what witnesses told them.
The relationship, if any, between Garcia and the three people taken into custody has not been disclosed. Police also have not said whether investigators believe the shooting happened inside a vehicle, outside it or at another location before Garcia was found near the Bellwood intersection.
The investigation remains active. Bellwood police had not released additional information about potential charges, the events leading to the shooting or the circumstances of Garcia’s death beyond the reported gunshot wound and the account that he was thrown from a vehicle.
Author note: Last updated October 22, 2026.