Joliet man caught on attempted murder charge in 2021 shooting

A man wanted on an attempted murder charge from a July 9, 2021, shooting in Joliet was nabbed near a dam at the Kankakee River in Wilmington, police said.

Since Aug. 10, Alvaro Hernandez, 25, of Joliet, has been wanted by the law on charges of attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and aggravated discharge of a firearm.

Hernandez failed to dupe a Wilmington police officer with a fake name after he was found near a dam at the Kankakee River, according to Wilmington Police Chief Joseph Mitchell.

The charges were sealed from public view until Hernandez was arrested in Wilmington and brought to the Will County Courthouse on Tuesday. Judge Sarah Jones had ordered the case sealed because it contained information “regarding an ongoing criminal investigation.”

Prosecutors alleged in a criminal complaint that Hernandez fired a gun at Daniel Miguel-Cortes and the shooting “proximately caused great bodily harm, permanent disability or permanent disfigurement” to Miguel-Cortes.

Details about the shooting were not readily available on Wednesday morning.

The Wilmington police officer who apprehended Hernandez had spotted him while on a routine patrol on Sunday, Mitchell said.

The officer saw Hernandez in the Kankakee River near the dam in violation of Wilmington city ordinance, Mitchell said.

Hernandez gave the officer his name as Alvaro Martinez, Mitchell said.

During the course of the investigation, the officer found a vehicle nearby that was registered to a person with the last name of Hernandez, Mitchell said.

After running a new name verification check, the officer learned a valid attempted murder warrant back to Alvaro Hernandez, Mitchell said. A photo was obtained on scene which confirmed Hernandez’s identity, he said.

Hernandez was arrested on the warrant, as well as on a charge of prohibited entry into the Kankakee River exclusionary zone, Mitchell said.

Hernandez was taken to Will County jail about 3 p.m. on Sunday. He remains in jail on a $1 million bond. He’ll need to post $100,000 for his release from jail.

Hernandez is scheduled for arraignment on July 11.