Harvard man pleads not guilty to attempted murder charges for shooting near Woodstock Square

A Harvard man pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges alleging that while out of the county jail pre-trial bond for a weapon- and drug-related case, he attempted to kill two men when he shot a gun at them near the historic Woodstock Square.

Erick Gomez-Rubi, 23, was charged with two counts of attempted first degree murder, Class X felonies, as well as two counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm, one count of reckless discharge of a firearm, and 10 counts of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, according to the indictment filed in the McHenry County courthouse.

He was being held in the McHenry County jail on $1 million bond. He is required to post $100,000 in order to be released.

The initial criminal complaint filed in July did not include the attempted murder charges.

“The indictment now has offenses with alleged mental states that were never part of the initial complaints,” Brian Stevens, Gomez-Rubi’s attorney said Thursday. “I am interested to see what supposed evidence was presented to the Grand Jury to return such an overcharged Bill. Erick is innocent of all these charges.”

A statement emailed from the State’s Attorney’s Office Thursday said that prosecutors “felt the additional charges were appropriate and brought them before the Grand Jury.”

Should he be convicted on the more serious Class X felonies, Gomez-Rubi faces up to 60 years in prison.

Authorities say that at about 10:45 p.m. on June 29, police were called to the 200 block of North Benton Street in response to an “altercation between two individuals that involved a firearm,” according to a news release from the Woodstock Police Department at the time of his arrest.

A verbal altercation had escalated to the point that Gomez-Rubi allegedly pointed a handgun at another person, police said.

According to the criminal complaint, he “discharged a firearm toward [a woman] and other bystanders, placing them in danger of great bodily harm” while in the road near the Square.

According to the indictment, to which he pleaded not guilty, he allegedly “knowingly and personally discharged a firearm” at two men.

Police said he then ran to a parked car and drove to the intersection of North Benton and East Judd streets, where he reengaged with the same person and fired off a single shot from the handgun.

No one was injured during the incident, police said.

Gomez-Rubi later was arrested at his Harvard home after a six-hourlong standoff, prosecutors said at a bond hearing last month where they asked his bond to be increased.

On the night of the alleged Woodstock Square incident, Gomez-Rubi was out of jail on bond for a separate case charged just two days prior.

Gomez-Rubi was arrested June 27 in Woodstock, where he was charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon and possession with intent to deliver 40 to 500 grams of marijuana, as well as misdemeanor charges of aggravated assault on public property and disorderly conduct, according to court documents.

He is accused of pointing a handgun at a woman in the 500 block of Central Parkway in Woodstock and saying, “I will kill you, [expletive],” according to the criminal complaint filed in that incident.