Ata Yousef El Ammouri (law enforcement photo).
CHICAGO, IL – A 65-year-old man who fled the country after he was charged with killing another man 34 years ago was arrested Friday on warrants for murder and jumping bail, Cook County Sheriff Thomas J. Dart announced today. Members of the Sheriff’s Central Warrant Unit took Ata Yousef El Ammouri into custody at approximately 5 p.m. at O’Hare International Airport after arriving from Jordan, where he resides. He was traveling to the United States to attend a graduation.
El Ammouri is accused of shooting and killing Joe Harris, 31, on the morning of July 22, 1979 after Harris walked out of El Ammouri’s store in the 500 block of 67th Street in Chicago without paying for a can of beer. After El Ammouri was charged with murder in 1979, El Ammouri posted $100,000 bail. El Ammouri received additional charges for jumping bail in November of 1979 after he failed to show up to court hearings. Authorities at the time believed El Ammouri fled the country to avoid prosecution.
Get updates from The Cardinal CRIME BLOG ‘Plus’ on Facebook. Just ‘LIKE’ the ‘Arlington Cardinal Crime & Forensics’ Page (become a fan of our page). The updates cover all posts in the 24/7 Crime Alerts! and sub-categories. See all of The Cardinal Facebook fan pages at Arlingtoncardinal.com/about/facebook …