Chicago crime: David Barklow charged in 2004 fatal shooting of Kent Projansky at downtown apartment following South America search
A man is back in custody and charged in a downtown Chicago murder over 20 years later following an international search effort.
David Barklow, 68, was extradited Friday to Chicago from South America, police announced.
Barklow was identified as the suspect who shot and killed 40-year-old Kent Projansky on December 18, 2004, inside his apartment in the 1100 block of N. Dearborn in the city's Near North neighborhood, Chicago police said.
Detectives found that Barklow lived across the street from Projansky at the time of the murder, and the suspect was arrested on October 16, 2019 by the U.S. Marshals Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force following an investigation.
Barklow was able to flee the county in December 2019, police said. It was learned in early 2022 that he had moved to Ecuador
Police secured an arrest warrant for Barklow for First Degree Murder and Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution.
In April 2025, detectives learned from INTERPOL that Barklow traveled from Ecuador to Peru, CPD said. "The U.S. Department of Justice, the DOJ's Office of International Affairs, the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. State Department, the Regional Security Office at the U.S. Embassy in Lima, Peru and Peruvian authorities" worked together to arrest Barklow.
The suspect is now back in Chicago and has been charged with one felony count of First-Degree Murder, the Cook County State's Attorney's Office said. It was not yet announced when he will appear in court.
"This investigation highlights the relentless work of CPD's homicide detectives," the Chicago Police Department said in a statement. "No matter how many years passed, detectives continued to work the case until this offender was in custody. They were determined to pursue justice for Projansky and bring a small measure of closure to his family, who for more than two decades, grieved knowing the offender responsible for the murder of their loved one was living freely. CPD's detectives will continue to pursue justice, just as they did in this case, for all who have been victimized and traumatized by violence."
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