Crime & Safety
Girlfriend: Skokie Shooter Was 'In Fear Of His Life'
About a month prior to allegedly firing eight shots at a vehicle in downtown Skokie, Alex Soballe was shot at five times outside his apartment in the 4900 block of Louise Avenue in Skokie, according to his girlfriend and police.
The girlfriend of alleged Skokie shooter Alex Soballe said her boyfriend was in "fear of his life" before he fired eight shots at a vehicle in downtown Skokie on June 14.
Nathalie Bafia, Soballe's girlfriend of two years, said Soballe was the victim of a shooting May 23 in the 4900 block of Louise Avenue. She said the shooting occurred after Soballe had a run-in with an ex-boyfriend of hers at a Walgreens in downtown Skokie.
"They didn't like each other because of prior history," Bafia said. "He was scared - they shot right next to Alex. They shot at him a couple of times.
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"He was scared for his life and he went out and got a gun," she added.
Bafia lives with her mother and Soballe. She said she was terrified after she heard gunshots outside her apartment May 23. One of the bullets struck a window about six-feet above where Soballe was standing, she said (see picture). Fortunately, the apartment the bullet went through was unoccupied at the time, Bafia said.
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According to Bafia, Soballe did not report who he thought was his shooter due to fear of retaliation.
Commander Brian Baker with the Skokie Police Department confirmed there was a shooting at the location May 23.
"Soballe was in the alley with one other individual," Baker said. "A car drove by and there were a reported five shots and the car then disappeared. According to Soballe and the other person, they had no idea who [fired the shots at them]."
Baker added that there wasn't too much he could say about the May shooting as it is still under investigation.
On July 2, from four counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm to four counts of attempted murder, according to police. Soballe is alleged to have that were "known" to him in the 4800 block of Oakton Street on June 14 around 5 p.m.
"After the shooting Alex became worried," Bafia said of the May 23 incident. "He didn't even like walking the dog. At anytime [he feared the person] could come back and just kill him."
Soballe is due in court Monday at the Skokie Courthouse. Check Skokie Patch soon for that story.
Read our previous coverage here
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