Sincere Cole murder: Chicago teen shot 24 times lost his mom in CTA train crash years earlier

Sincere Cole Murder: 15-year-old Chicago boy dies after being shot 24 times

A 15-year-old Chicago boy named Sincere Cole died after being shot 24 times on Saturday, Chicago police said. Cole was killed while leaving a Shell gas station at 67th and Western in Chicago Lawn just before 7 p.m. on Saturday. Nate Rodgers reports.

CHICAGO - Brandy Martin began taking care of her 15-year-old nephew three years ago after the boy’s mother was struck and killed by a CTA train.

The boy, Sincere Cole, persevered despite other tragedies in the family: losing his grandmother to COVID-19, losing a cousin to gun violence.

"It was very hard for him," Martin said Monday. "He had dreams, he had goals."

Sincere was shot the head in the 2400 block of West Marquette Road in Marquette Park Saturday evening, police said. Family said he was shot about two dozen times on a sidewalk outside a Shell gas station.

Sincere Cole | Provided

The boy was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn and pronounced dead, police said. No one was in custody.

Sincere was one of three people shot and killed in Chicago over the weekend. Around the time Sincere was killed, a man was fatally shot nearby in an alley in the 5900 block of South Washtenaw Avenue.

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Sincere was a creative child who was often misunderstood, his aunt said. "He just did things a little different from the others. It’s not a bad thing. He was just different."

The boy "lived to work" and there was no job too big or small, Martin said. "Cleaning out houses, pumping gas, shoveling snow. The legal way — the legit way."

He dressed well and appreciated gym shoes and hoodies. "He liked to be fly," Martin said.

Sincere lost his mother, Felon Smith, in a CTA train accident in 2019, Martin said.

Sincere Cole and Felon Smith | Provided

Smith was struck by train at 69th Street when she climbed down to get a phone she had dropped. Security video showed a private security guard standing by as Smith was struck. The train operator was fired for being "inattentive" and not watching the tracks ahead.

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"It’s hard when that happens when you’re growing up and trying to find out who you are," Martin said of her nephew.

Smith was a single mother, looking after Sincere and his two sisters, Martin said. After she died, Sincere’s father returned and began taking care of him with Martin.

Martin said she’s struggling with Sincere’s murder — the latest in a series of tragedies to strike her family.

In 2019, Martin lost her 22-year-old daughter to gun violence, she said. Akeelah Addison was shot and killed July 5 in the 4200 block of South Wells Street in Fuller Park, police said.