By ANDY GRIMM and ASHLEE REZIN
Chicago Sun-Times
Violence erupted inside Powell’s Barbershop, an institution in Englewood. l;eaving one man dead and another injured Thursday afternoon. | Andy Grimm/For Sun-Times
Gerald Sias was killed and another man wounded in a shooting at Powell’s Barber Shop, a staple in the Englewood neighborhood, on Thursday afternoon.
The men were inside the shop in the 1100 block of West 63rd Street at 3:11 p.m. when a male suspect outside fired shots into the establishment, according to Chicago Police.
The 38-year-old Sias suffered a gunshot wound to the arm and was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 4:15 p.m., according to police and the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
A relative said Sias, of the Gerald Sias, of the 7200 block of South Carpenter, was the father of five children, several of whom he brought to Powell’s regularly for trims.
A crowd gathers around Sunni Powell, center, in a black T-shirt, after two men were shot inside his well-known barbershop. | Andy Grimm/For Sun-TImes
“He was laid-back, just a nice, quiet man,” said Latanya Johnson, the aunt of Sias’ 8-year-old son. “I was shocked when I heard. If (police) are out there trying to say he was a bad person, they’re lying.”
The younger man, 36, was shot in the leg and was also taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition, according to Chicago Fire Department Cmdr. Walter Schroeder.
Owner Sunni Powell said he was shocked by the shooting inside his shop, and that the shooter and the slain man weren’t regular customers.
The shop, tucked in the corner of a busy strip mall at 63rd and Racine, has become a neighborhood hub since it opened six years ago.
Powell has become well known for offering free cuts to CPS students at the start of the school year, and hosting community meetings and events. His shop was featured in a scene in Spike Lee’s movie “Chi-Raq.”
Powell said he’s never had any similar violence inside his shop.
“We’re going to keep doing what we do, and being a positive force in the community,” Powell said as he slumped in a chair inside the fish and chicken joint next door to his shop.
“This isn’t about to shut us down.”