Cook County man charged with murder in shooting death of 9-year-old Ulysses Campos

COOK COUNTY - A Melrose Park man has been charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of a 9-year-old boy who was killed while celebrating his grandmother's birthday in Franklin Park over the weekend.

Ulysses Campos was playing with his cousins at a 70th birthday party for his grandmother when shots were fired from a car driving down the alley. Campos was hit in the chest and died, two weeks shy of turning 10.

"A few of my other cousins were there and they’re all kids," Karina Cazares, 26, told the Sun-Times. "It’s horrible, it’s awful. They’re traumatized now, I obviously have the trauma from it as well."

"We lost a member of our family that we loved and cared for so deeply, and we still do," Cazares continued. "We just hope that we can put his soul to rest and get through this as a family."

The shooting happened around 10:15 p.m. Saturday in the 2800 block of Elder Lane. Police said there was "disturbance" in the alley and someone in a passing car fired four to six shots.

Campos was taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where he was pronounced dead, police said.

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Javier Murillo, 37, was taken into custody and charged with first-degree murder. A judge has yet to set his bond, but Murillo will appear in court in Maywood.

"This was a very tragic and sad event, and our prayers go out to the family of Ulysses," said Michael Witz, director of the Franklin Park Police Department.

Campos had an older brother and three younger sisters, Cazares said.

"This was completely random," Cazares said. "We were celebrating my grandma’s 70th birthday in the backyard and someone chose to open fire at a group of kids, none of which are gang-related or gang-affiliated."

Cazares’ favorite memory of Campos was in 2017, when his face lit up after she gave him a straw hat from her time studying abroad in Thailand.

The hat was "nothing fancy," but Campos was excited because it was a "recuerdo, a memory of the trips we had taken."

Campos loved spending time with the cousins around his age. He enjoyed playing Fortnite with them, sharing his toys and showing them his new gaming headset, according to Cazares.

She described her cousin as someone who "always had the kindest, sweetest smile on his face."

"He had a soft but husky voice," Cazares said. "He was always excited to see everyone."

In a statement to the Sun-Times, his family described him as "extremely loving, full-hearted, compassionate and easy to approach."

A GoFundMe page was created to help Campos’ family with funeral costs.

Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.