A south suburban man is facing a federal weapons charge after authorities said he rode a bicycle into a restricted garage on Federal Plaza in Chicago’s Loop and fired several gunshots, causing damage to the Kluczynski Building.
Edmund Horvath, 36, of Lynwood, was charged in a criminal complaint with illegal possession of a 9mm handgun by someone previously convicted of a crime of violence — namely domestic battery. He made an initial court appearance Wednesday afternoon at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse, across the street from where the shooting occurred, and was ordered held pending a detention hearing Monday.
According to the eight-page complaint, Horvath was seen on surveillance footage riding a bicycle down an entrance ramp towards an interior garage entrance at the Kluczynski Building, which is on the southeast side of Federal Plaza at the intersection of Jackson and Dearborn.
A security officer stationed at the interior garage entrance of the Kluczynski Building spoke to Horvath through the window of a secured garage door, telling him he had to leave the restricted area, according to the complaint. The guard then “heard shots and saw flashes,” according to the complaint, which included an affidavit by an agent with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Security cameras also captured the sounds of “multiple rounds” being discharged from a firearm from the interior garage entrance, according to the complaint. “The discharged rounds caused both interior and exterior damage to the Kluczynski Building and surrounding infrastructure,” the complaint stated.
No one was struck by the gunfire, the Tribune has previously reported.
Chicago police dispatched to the scene found Horvath alone inside the garage entrance with the same bicycle he’d ridden down the ramp minutes earlier, the complaint said. The officers also saw multiple spent shell casings and a Palmetto State Armory 9mm handgun lying on the ground. The gun was later found to have been reported stolen from a vehicle on Oct. 14, the complaint said.
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When being questioned by Chicago police, Horvath admitted to possessing the weapon and said “he was shooting due to people purportedly chasing him,” the complaint said.
Cook County Criminal Court records show that in addition to the misdemeanor domestic battery conviction, Horvath has a criminal history that includes the 2019 arrest on murder charges stemming from the scalding death of his 10-month-old daughter, Akira.
According to prosecutors at the time, Horvath had claimed he found Akira’s skin was “red and peeling” while she was being given a bath. But prosecutors said the little girl’s injuries were consistent with boiling water being poured on her body and could not have been caused the way Horvath claimed, court records show.
Court records show Horvath eventually pleaded guilty in 2021 to reduced charges of misdemeanor reckless conduct causing bodily harm. He was sentenced to 948 days of time served in the Cook County Jail and ordered to take parenting classes, records show.
Most recently, Horvath was arrested on the Green Line on July second while smoking a marijuana cigarette, records show. He was also charged in that case with possession of a small amount of PCP.