(WTTW News)

Chicago Police announced two men have been arrested and charged with five counts of first-degree attempted murder tied to a Sept. 13 shooting that left a 12-year-old boy in critical condition.

Isaiah Renteria, 22, and Pedro Molina, 23, are suspected in the weekend shooting on Chicago’s Near West Side in which they allegedly opened fire on the boy, his friends and uncles as the group walked home from a store in the 1800 block of West 21st Place. A bullet struck the 12-year-old in the head; none of the others were wounded.

“This was just a family party,” said Brendan Deenihan, chief of detectives with the Chicago Police Department. 

Surveillance footage shows a black car, driven by Renteria with Molina as a passenger, circling the neighborhood for 15 to 20 minutes prior to the shooting. The victims have no gang affiliation, according to Deenihan, who called the violence a case of bad guys looking for someone to shoot.

Chicago officers chased Renteria’s car as it fled, as part of a separate carjacking mission, but called off the pursuit due to the high speed of the chase, Deenihan said. A helicopter operated by the Department of Homeland Security continued to follow the car all the way to Hinsdale, he said, where Hinsdale officers arrested Renteria and Molina.

“Without that helicopter, we’re not able to do this,” Deenihan said.

Retracing the men’s movements, Hinsdale police recovered a gun that matched shell casings from the Chicago shooting. Additional evidence reportedly tied Renteria and Molina to the Chicago crime and they were turned over to Chicago police, Deenihan said. 

The main focus remains on the 12-year-old, who was “shot in the head for no reason,” Deenihan said. “He’s still very, very critical.”

Contact Patty Wetli: @pattywetli | (773) 509-5623 |  [email protected]