Shaquille Dirkans, 23, was found dead in the back seat of a white Mercedes on the Dan Ryan Expressway in Chicago on the night of July 27, 2018. The car was discovered in the northbound lanes between the Stevenson Expressway and 31st Street around 11:50 p.m., having apparently struck the concrete wall of the overpass. An autopsy the next day determined Dirkans died of a gunshot wound to the neck; his death was ruled a homicide.

In December 2018, prosecutors charged 26-year-old Deonte Young with first-degree murder in connection with the shooting. Authorities say Young and Dirkans were backseat passengers that night; prosecutors allege Young pointed a gun at Dirkans without provocation, fired, and struck him in the neck. The front-seat passenger reportedly wrestled the gun from Young, who then bit that passenger near his left eye and attempted to climb into the front seat to attack the driver, causing the vehicle to stop near 25th Street. After the shooting Young chased the driver and was later found nearby with blood on his clothes.

Young was also charged with unlawful use of a weapon and resisting a police officer and was ordered held without bail, with a court date set for December 27, 2018. Anyone with information about the case is urged to come forward.