Kidney donor found dead in trunk of abandoned car

Kidney donor found dead in trunk of abandoned car
SOUTH SIDE | Gave organ to ailing sister 3 months ago
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January 4, 2010

BY KIM JANSSEN Staff Reporter

A 27-year-old man was found shot to death in the trunk of an abandoned car Saturday afternoon on the South Side.

But a part of Raul Barajas is -- literally -- with his older sister Laura Barajas.
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Murder victim Raul Barajas visits the bedside of his sister Laura Barajas after one of his kidneys was transplanted into her at UIC hospital. He was found killed over he weekend.

She said her brother's donated kidney is living proof of his giving spirit.

"He lives on inside of me," a sobbing Laura Barajas, 30, said Sunday as she remembered the devoted sibling who helped her fight complications from her diabetes less than three months ago.

"I didn't even have to ask -- he just offered as soon as he heard I needed dialysis."

Police were hunting for clues Sunday to the identity of Barajas' killer after they found his frozen body stuffed in the trunk of a stolen 1999 Mercury Cougar in the 5800 block of South Loomis in Englewood, Chicago Police spokeswoman Gabrielle Lesniak said.

Barajas had been shot in the head and his body was beginning to decompose, despite the icy temperatures, suggesting he had been dead for some time, police said. As of Sunday night, no arrests had been made.

Another sister, Maritza Barajas, reported him missing Dec. 27 after he failed to return to the house they shared in the 2800 block of West 21st Place in Pilsen.

"He was still weak from the transplant and had problems walking," Maritza Barajas said. "I immediately knew something was wrong."

When Raul Barajas failed to show up for his brother Jose's 11th birthday party Dec. 28, the family's fears grew.

"He'd promised to bring the cake," Maritza Barajas said.

Just two days earlier, the Benito Juarez High School graduate and fitness fanatic had taken his big sister and her husband to the cinema to see "Sherlock Holmes."

He was in a "good mood," Maritza Barajas said. If he had any enemies, his family wasn't aware of them, she said.

They're taking solace in the sacrifice he made for his sister before he died but are struggling to pay for his funeral after covering the cost of the transplant, she said.

In the hours after the transplant at UIC Hospital, Laura Barajas said, her brother managed to walk to her bedside and offer her comfort.

"He was laughing," she said. "He said I had his twin inside me, and he said, 'you'd better take care of him!'

"I know he was in pain, but he didn't want me to suffer."

http://www.suntimes.com/news/24-7/1971524,kidney-donor-found-dead-in-trunk-010410.article