Tinley Man Charged After Shooting To Scare Away Car Thieves: Cops

TINLEY PARK, IL — A 43-year-old Tinley Park man was charged with reckless discharge of a firearm Wednesday, after police said he fired a handgun three times into the air Tuesday evening to scare away people who were stealing his car.

According to police, Naser Zaghlol was at home in the 16700 block of Jean Lane when his son gave him a call, saying he saw Zaghlol’s gray 2016 Nissan Altima speeding out of a nearby parking lot. Zaghlol then realized someone was stealing his car, and in an effort to stop them, he loaded his handgun, went outside and fired three shots into the air to scare the thieves, police said.

According to police, Zaghlol’s car had been stolen weeks earlier in Richton Park while he was working as a Door Dash/Uber Eats driver. While the car was eventually recovered, the key fob was not, and Tinley Park police suspect this is why his car was targeted a second time.

Deputy Police Chief of Operations Lawrence Rafferty told Patch that Zaghlol was a victim in this instance. He said Zaghlol was charged because the car was out of sight during the time spent between grabbing his gun, loading it and heading outside to fire.

Rafferty said the area is heavily populated, and Zaghlol was also out there with teenagers, adding that when the gun was fired into the air, the bullets could have fallen onto their heads or harmed someone else nearby.

"When you fire a weapon into the air, it has to come back down," Rafferty said.

The car has yet to be recovered as of Wednesday afternoon, Rafferty said. Police are investigating the theft, including reviewing nearby video surveillance footage.

All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.