Northwestern Grad Student Fatally Shot In Rogers Park Crossfire

EVANSTON, IL — An incoming Northwestern University graduate student was fatally shot after he was caught in the crossfire of a Sunday evening shooting on the border of Chicago and Evanston, according to police and university officials.

Shane Colombo, 25, a San Francisco State University graduate, was due to begin the Psychology PhD program this fall and had just moved to the area from New York City, where the promising student had been performing research in a cognitive neuroscience lab at Columbia University, university officials said.

Colombo, a native of Sun City, California, was struck in the stomach around 8:24 p.m. in the 7600 block of North Clark Street and taken to St. Francis Hospital. He was pronounced dead from multiple gunshot wounds shortly after 9 p.m., according to Chicago police and the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office.

Colombo had been waiting at bus stop near the corner of Clark and Howard streets in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago when he was hit in an exchange of gunfire between two men, the university said.

"It saddens us that this event occurred in the vibrant and caring community that we share with many of our fellow members of Northwestern," said university deans Teresa Woodruff and Adrian Randolph in a joint statement. "It also saddens us that the world will not one day be able to benefit from the research Shane was about to pursue."

University officials offered support services to students and staff and assured the Northwestern community the safety and security were their top priorities. Area North Chicago Police Department detectives are investigating the shooting. No one was in custody, police said.

"There is no justification for such violence," Northwestern President Morton Shapiro and Provost Jonathan Holloway said. "As a University community we remain more resolved than ever to identify the causes of violence in our larger community — and to work toward solutions that will create a better life for all those within it.

Colombo's mother told the Chicago Sun-Times she had been concerned about the danger moving to Chicago but her son, who had been diagnosed with cancer in high school and underwent chemotherapy and radiation therapy, had assured her it would be safe.

"I f------ hate Chicago," she said. "I can't shake it because I didn't want him to come here."

Colombo and his fiancee Vincent Perez had recently purchased a condo in Evanston together after dating long distance for two years, according to the Sun-Times.

"The love of my life and partner was shot and killed yesterday. He is the most handsome brilliant and quirky man I know. I will miss you Shane. I will be strong for him," Perez said in a social media post. "The world is f-----. And we need stricter gun laws."