GoFundMe – On Friday, January 23, 2026, the 3500 block of West Wabansia Avenue held the typical evening rhythm of a Northwest Side neighborhood as dusk fell over the residential streets of Chicago’s Humboldt Park area.
Families wrapped up their days in this area near North St. Louis Avenue, dotted with modest homes, apartments, and corner stores, where parked cars lined the curbs under streetlights just flickering on. Andrew Garay, a 30-year-old father, sat in his 2020 Nissan Murano, possibly waiting to pick up loved ones, unaware that the ordinary moment would turn deadly.
Suddenly, around 8:54 p.m., a gunman wearing a red hoodie approached the parked vehicle on foot and opened fire without warning. He unleashed multiple shots through the window at close range, striking Garay once in the head in a swift and targeted attack that lasted only seconds. The assailant then fled through a nearby gangway, vanishing into the network of alleys and streets as the sound of gunfire echoed and nearby residents began to react.
Chicago Police Department officers responded quickly to reports of shots fired in the 3500 block of West Wabansia Avenue, arriving to find Garay gravely wounded inside his Murano amid shattered glass and the chaos of the aftermath. Paramedics provided emergency aid at the scene before rushing him by ambulance to Mount Sinai Hospital, a short distance away in the city, where staff prepared for a critical trauma case in the busy emergency room.
Despite the rapid medical response and efforts by doctors to save him, Andrew Garay was pronounced dead at the hospital from the single gunshot wound to his head. Authorities withheld his official identification pending family notification, but friends and relatives soon shared his name on social media, confirming the loss of a young man in his prime whose life centered on his growing family.
Andrew Garay was remembered by those closest to him as a kind-hearted man who loved everyone and would give the shirt off his back, even if it was his last. His vibrant personality lit up any room he entered, and he poured dedication into being a hardworking father, building a future for his children and supporting those around him with unwavering generosity in the Humboldt Park community he called home.
With no motive released by police and the gunman still at large, the investigation continues into the senseless shooting on West Wabansia Avenue, as a GoFundMe organized by Samantha Knutt seeks to ease funeral costs and lost wages for the grieving family. The incident adds to the toll of gun violence in the neighborhood, leaving loved ones to navigate profound loss while holding onto memories of a devoted father taken far too soon in a place meant for everyday safety.