A man on parole for armed robbery has been charged with stabbing a 67-year-old man who was dining with his family at a restaurant on North Michigan Avenue, police said.
Jimmy Harris, 56, was charged with attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery with intent to do great bodily harm and aggravated unlawful restraint, police said.
Harris is accused of attacking Mir Jafar Shah, of Oak Brook, in the restroom of a restaurant in the Westin Hotel around 8 p.m. Saturday officials said.
A second man, reportedly a bartender, was cut trying to stop Harris from fleeing, police said. Harris was arrested near the hotel and a knife recovered, police said.
Shah was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where his condition was stabilized, police said. His family said in a statement that he was expected to make a full recovery. The man who chased Harris was also taken to Northwestern, in good condition, police said.
According to Shah's niece, Jameela Ali, 28, of Lincoln Park, she and her uncle were part of a group of seven dining in a restaurant inside the Westin while downtown for the Festival of Lights. She heard a commotion inside a restroom, then saw her uncle, badly injured, struggling with another man outside the restroom.
"His left eye was bruised, totally swollen shut," Ali said. "There was blood gushing from his neck, blood all over his clothes. He looked like he had been punched in the face several times. I started screaming. I didn't know what to do."
Ali said he suffered a laceration to his external jugular vein and received exploratory surgery to ensure there was no further damage.
Harris has used a long list of aliases, and has at least 60 arrests and nine felony convictions dating back to the late 1970s, according to Chicago police, state and court records.
Harris, who has tattoos showing allegiance to the Conservative Vice Lord street gang, has been convicted for burglary, robbery and armed robbery. He has been collectively sentenced to 60 years in prison since 1979.
Harris, whose last known address was the South Loop's Pacific Garden Mission, was on parole for a 2008 armed robbery conviction at the time of Saturday's attack, court records show.
In that case, Harris was found guilty of armed robbery, but prosecutors dropped several other charges, including aggravated battery and retail theft.
In August 2007, authorities said Harris walked into a Near West Side Dominick's store, stuffed several bottles of rum into his pants and walked out, according to court records.
A store security agent watching on a closed-circuit surveillance system pursued Harris outside, authorities said.
Harris ran from the security agent but fell, breaking the glass bottles. Authorities said Harris used the glass shards to cut the agent on the arm and leg. Harris was detained until police arrived and the 30-year-old security agent was treated at a hospital for minor injuries.
Tribune reporter Liam Ford contributed.
cdrhodes@tribune.com
Twitter: @ChicagoBreaking
Charges in stabbing at restaurant along Mag Mile
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Charges in stabbing at restaurant along Mag Mile
