Detectives are trying to learn when she was shot and who left her on a dirt road.
CHICAGO, Ill. — City sanitation workers found the body of a woman with multiple gunshot wounds Tuesday afternoon on Chicago’s far South Side near the Altgeld Gardens area, police said, launching an investigation that began hours after witnesses reported hearing gunfire nearby.
The woman’s identity and exact age had not been released as of Friday, and police have not announced any arrests. Investigators were working to piece together a timeline between reports of gunshots late Monday and the discovery of the body about midday Tuesday in the 600 block of East 134th Place. The case adds to continuing concerns about gun violence in the city’s far South Side neighborhoods, where stretches of industrial land, dead-end streets and isolated roads can make it harder for residents and police to see what happened in real time.
Police said officers were called to the 600 block of East 134th Place at about 12:15 p.m. Tuesday after city workers reported finding a woman lying along a dirt roadway. A Chicago Police Department report described the scene as the woman being “on the side of the dirt road in a prone position with multiple shell casings around her and multiple gunshot wounds to the victim’s body.” Paramedics responded and pronounced her dead at the scene, police said. The discovery, made during a routine city route, turned an otherwise ordinary weekday into an active crime scene as investigators marked off the area and searched for evidence.
What police do not yet know publicly is when the woman was shot, whether she was killed at that spot or moved there, or what led up to the shooting. A police report cited by local media said two witnesses told officers they heard gunshots about 9 p.m. Monday night, leaving a gap of roughly 15 hours before the body was found. Detectives typically try to narrow that window by reviewing calls for service, locating possible surveillance video from nearby streets or businesses, and interviewing anyone who may have been in the area Monday night or early Tuesday. Police have not released a description of any suspect or any vehicle believed to be involved.
The location described by police sits near Altgeld Gardens, a large public housing community on the far South Side. The area is part of a patchwork of residential blocks, open land and limited through-traffic roads, which can create secluded corners even within city limits. In cases like this, investigators often look closely at the physical setting because it can affect what evidence is available, from how many shell casings can be recovered to whether tire tracks or footprints might be preserved on an unpaved surface. Officers also try to determine whether the shooting is connected to a dispute, a robbery, a domestic situation or a broader conflict that may have carried into the neighborhood.
The investigation is being handled by Area Two detectives, a unit that covers much of the city’s South Side and is responsible for many homicide inquiries. Police have not said whether the woman lived in the area, whether she was reported missing before she was found, or whether investigators have identified her through fingerprints, records checks or contact with family members. In Chicago, the medical examiner’s office typically confirms identity and cause of death after an autopsy and other examinations, and those steps can also help determine the approximate time of death. Police have not said when those findings are expected to be released.
On the day the body was discovered, the focus at the scene was on preserving the area and collecting what could be recovered from the dirt road and its edges. Shell casings can help investigators determine the type of firearm used and whether the same weapon has appeared in other shootings. Detectives also look for witnesses who may not have realized the importance of what they heard Monday night, such as a burst of shots or the sound of a vehicle speeding away. Even small details, like whether any nearby lights were working or whether there were fresh tracks, can become important as police build a picture of the final moments before the shooting.
As of Friday, police had not announced any public briefings, charges or a suspect description. Investigators were expected to continue interviewing residents and city employees who were in the area Tuesday, while also checking for video along nearby routes that could show movement in and out of the block around the time witnesses reported hearing shots. Police also were expected to continue efforts to identify the woman and notify relatives. Without a name, friends and family can struggle to learn details, and the absence of identification can slow the search for motive and connections.
Author note: Last updated February 20, 2026.