Man Who Shot Stranger In Face In West Chicago Sentenced To 45 Years

WEST CHICAGO, IL — A DeKalb man who shot a man in the face in West Chicago was sentenced to 45 years in prison, according to the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office. A jury found Ahmad Steele, 38, guilty of attempted first degree murder and aggravated battery with a firearm.

The shooting took place on Jan. 28, 2021, in the parking lot of Maipei Corporation, 430 Industrial Dr. Just before 8 p.m., police were called to the location for a report that a man had been shot in the face. Prosecutors say the man had been eating in his vehicle around 7:30 p.m. when Steele pulled up and parked by the victim.

Steele then approached the driver's side of the man's car and shot at the man, striking his face, according to a news release. Steele fled the scene and was taken into custody Feb. 6 following a traffic stop in Naperville.

"The victim, who had undergone five surgeries to reconstruct his jaw, passed away from an unrelated illness in 2023," a news release said.

“On a cold January evening, for no apparent reason at all, Ahmad Steele approached a man unknown to him as he sat in his car on dinner break, and shot him in the face with a shotgun,” DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said in a statement.

Berlin added, “While the motive for this extremely violent, unprovoked attack may never be known, we do know the physical and emotional pain Mr. Steele inflicted on an innocent man forever changed his life. The randomness of this horrific act of violence shook an entire community to its core and we are all thankful that Mr. Steele will more than likely spend what amounts to the rest of his life behind bars, away from society, where he will be unable to harm anyone ever again."

Steele is required to serve 85 percent of his 45 year sentence before he becomes eligible for parole.