A Chicago 911 dispatcher was killed early Friday after she was shot while driving through the Back of the Yards neighborhood on the city’s South Side.
Natalia Rodriguez, 50, was traveling through the 4500 block of South Wood Street around 12:17 a.m. when gunfire struck her vehicle, according to Chicago police. Her vehicle then crashed into a parked SUV.
Rodriguez was taken to John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, where she was later pronounced dead.
Rodriguez worked as a police communications operator with the Chicago Office of Emergency Management and Communications for about a decade. The department remembered her as a dedicated employee and a valued colleague who played an important role in Chicago’s 911 operations.
“Natalia’s passing is a terrible loss to her family and to OEMC,” the department said in a statement, adding that her contributions to 9-1-1 operations and the city would not be forgotten.
Reward offered for information
No arrests have been announced, and Area One detectives are continuing to investigate the shooting.
Cook County Crime Stoppers is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information that leads to an arrest and indictment in Rodriguez’s death.
Ald. Ray Lopez, whose 15th Ward includes the area where the shooting occurred, said investigators were looking into whether multiple armed people were involved. Police have not publicly confirmed that account or identified a motive.
The shooting has also drawn attention to the dangers faced by emergency personnel outside their workplaces. Rodriguez spent her career answering calls for people in crisis, and her death has prompted colleagues and community members to remember her service.
Authorities have asked anyone with information about the shooting to come forward as the investigation continues.
