A two-car crash on Milwaukee’s south side turned terrifying on Monday when a 20-year-old man allegedly opened fire, leaving a 17-year-old with graze wounds and shell casings scattered across the street. Investigators say roughly 20 spent 9mm casings were recovered at the scene, and surveillance video appears to show muzzle flashes popping off in rapid succession. The teenager was taken to Children’s Wisconsin for treatment and is expected to survive.
According to the criminal complaint and court records reported by FOX6, police identified the suspected shooter as 20-year-old Yadriel Villegas-Rivera. He is charged with five counts, including first-degree recklessly endangering safety, endangering safety by use of a dangerous weapon, a count alleging possession or sale of a machine gun, resisting an officer and misdemeanor battery. Villegas-Rivera made his first court appearance on Thursday, where a court commissioner set his cash bond at $50,000; a preliminary hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday.
Auto Sears, Switches And Why The Gunfire Raised Red Flags
Investigators flagged the weapon involved because of how fast the shots appeared to ring out. Small conversion parts known as auto sears or “switches” can turn a semi-automatic pistol into a fully automatic weapon, dramatically boosting its rate of fire. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives treats these devices as machine-gun conversion parts, and recent federal prosecutions show that possessing or selling them can bring felony charges and multi-year prison terms. State-level analysis also notes that Wisconsin law bans auto-sear devices. See ATF and Giffords Law Center for background and recent cases.
Surveillance Video, Street Accounts And The Arrest
Investigators who reviewed surveillance footage and the charging documents told FOX6 that the video shows the collision, followed almost immediately by extremely rapid gunfire. Officers later recovered 20 9mm casings in the area where Villegas-Rivera is seen firing. The 17-year-old victim told police he was struck after being pushed to the ground, and the complaint states that Villegas-Rivera admitted on video that he was the person shooting. Officers arrested him a few blocks away after he fled; according to the complaint, it took five officers to get him into custody, and no firearm was found on him at the time of arrest…