Jonathan Denicolas, 26, of Zion, Illinois, was fatally shot on November 27, 2021, in the parking lot of Gurnee Mills during the busy Thanksgiving weekend. Gurnee police responded to reports of shots fired and found Denicolas being assisted by a good Samaritan; he was taken to a local hospital and died a few hours later.

The investigation resulted in the arrest of 27-year-old Joey Gonzalez of Vernon Hills, who was charged with second-degree murder, aggravated discharge of a firearm, and unlawful use of a weapon by a felon. Gonzalez argued self-defense at trial but the jury rejected that claim; prosecutors noted his prior involvement in a 2017 incident in which he accidentally shot and killed a friend. In October 2024 Gonzalez was sentenced to 32 years in prison. A victim-impact statement from Denicolas’s mother described him as a playful and loving young man and detailed the family’s profound loss.

Another person, Jesse Zumaya, was also charged with second-degree murder and weapons violations and was awaiting trial. Did anyone in the Gurnee or Zion area see or hear anything that night that could still help investigators?