The incident occurred on Sunday afternoon, March 17, in the Irving Park neighborhood of Chicago. Bernardo Romero, a 25-year-old man, was sitting on a front porch on the 4200 block of North Kimball Avenue when two men approached him. At around 1:23 p.m., the men confronted Romero on foot and shot him five times in the chest before fleeing the scene in a white SUV.
Romero was rushed to Illinois Masonic Hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
Prior to the shooting, Romero’s baby mama, identified as Marleny Janet or Marleny Romero on Facebook, shared his location on the social media platform and criticized his enemies for not going after him. She accused them of being weak for not harming him despite alleged past conflicts.
Social media users raised concerns about Marleny’s post, suggesting that she inadvertently contributed to Romero’s death by sharing his location. Some accused her of potentially inciting violence against him.
Further investigation revealed that Marleny had a history of altercations with Romero. She was previously arrested on August 27, 2023, for domestic battery causing bodily harm. However, she was released the following day. Allegations surfaced that Marleny had engaged in ongoing domestic violence with Romero, with claims that she had even stabbed him in the past.
Marleny deactivated her Facebook page following the incident, leading some to speculate about her involvement in Romero’s death. However, no arrests have been made in connection with the shooting as of Monday, March 18, and the investigation is ongoing. Police are still unclear about the motives behind the shooting.
