‘Took his last breath in my arms’: Mom describes holding her dying 15-year-old son and ‘trying to keep him alive’ after he’s gunned down in front of her

A 15-year-old lad visiting a Chicago vicinity to observe his brother’s birthday was gunned down successful beforehand of his mother, who tried to “keep him alive” by holding the teen’s cervix wherever helium was changeable arsenic helium “took his last breath” successful her arms, the ma says.

“They killed my baby,” said Tierra Evans, parent of Syruss Box Jr., successful an interrogation with section ABC affiliate WLS. “He wasn’t adjacent from astir there. He conscionable came implicit determination to observe his brother’s birthday,” the ma added.

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Box, who is from Posen, was killed Saturday conscionable aft 6 p.m. successful the 400-block of W. 110th Street successful Roseland, according to police. He was reportedly lasting adjacent the sidewalk erstwhile a “silver Honda” pulled up and 2 individuals wrong of it started blasting.

“Two-door with 2 masked men,” Evans said, alleging that she saw them.

“They flew down Eggleston,” the ma added, noting however Box coiled up being fatally shot successful the cervix and abdomen. “I was holding his neck, trying to support him alive,” Evans said. “He took his past enactment successful my arms. My babe died successful my arms.”

Box’s grandmother, Tara Knighten, and great-grandmother, Barbara Myers, told WLS the household has been struggling immensely with the loss. Police person yet to bring anyone into custody arsenic a suspect.

“I’m truthful sad… I don’t cognize what to do,” Myers said.

“He didn’t adjacent get a accidental to live,” Knighten added. “He was innocent. But I conjecture God needed him much than we did. Whoever did this — you request to stop. We’re destroying each other.”

A GoFundMe created for Evans by 1 of her cousins says Box was “out doing what helium loves to bash best” — spending clip with household and “being a kid” — erstwhile helium was changeable and killed Saturday. The fundraiser’s statement says helium was “wrongfully targeted and gunned down successful wide daylight by the hands of walking demons portion visiting family.”

Describing Box by his nickname “Tuggie,” the fundraiser describes him arsenic a “very loving, helpful, kind-hearted child.” It says helium was the oldest retired of six and “always enactment his siblings and his parent earlier himself.”