On the afternoon of February 20, 2025, 24-year-old Jamal Bilata was shot while walking with another person in the 700 block of 16th Street in Sioux City. A vehicle driven by 27-year-old Jonaz Maldonado allegedly stopped in the street, the driver directed a racial slur at Bilata, and opened fire, striking him five times in the neck and shoulder. Bilata fled but collapsed near 15th and Jackson Streets and was taken to MercyOne Medical Center in critical condition before being transferred to a Sioux Falls hospital, where he died on February 23.

Maldonado fled at high speed after the shooting, reportedly exceeding 100 mph in a 35 mph zone and later crashed into a lamppost. He was apprehended that evening and initially charged with attempted murder; after Bilata’s death the charge was upgraded to first-degree murder. Additional counts include being a felon in possession of a firearm, going armed with intent, reckless use of a firearm, eluding law enforcement, and habitual offender enhancement. Maldonado has prior felony convictions in Iowa for trafficking in stolen weapons, possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, and second-degree theft, and has pleaded not guilty to the charges in Bilata’s death.

Does anyone have information about Jamal Bilata’s movements that afternoon or saw the vehicle involved?