July 5, 2022, 4:00 AM
July 5, 2022, 4:00 AM
A man armed with a rifle opened fire and left at least six dead and 24 wounded yesterday during a parade through the Independence Day of the United States in Highland Park, a town north of Chicago, in the state of Illinois.
“Two dozen people have been transported to the hospital of Highland Park. Six have been confirmed dead,” Commander Chris O’Neil, of the Police of this wealthy town of about 30,000 inhabitants on the shores of Lake Michigan, told reporters.
the suspect, identified as Robert E Crimo III, A 22-year-old escaped and was described by police as “dangerous,” O’Neil said. The individual was later arrested. Police said “firearm evidence” was found on a nearby roof.
“Everything indicates that (the suspect) was discreet, it was very difficult to see,” Lake County Major Crimes Task Force spokesman Christopher Covelli said.
Several law enforcement agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, State Police and local Police, are collaborating in the response to the attack.
“On a day when we come together to celebrate community and freedom, we are mourning the tragic loss of life and fighting the terror it brought us,” said Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering.
Both O’Neil and Rotering said the shooting started around 10:14 a.m.
“Dad, something is wrong”
Along the parade route, abandoned chairs and other belongings could be seen scattered as spectators desperately fled. “Everyone thought it was fireworks,” a parade attendee, who identified herself as Zoe, told CNN.
“My dad thought it was part of the show, and I was like, ‘Dad, no…something’s wrong.’ And I grabbed it. And I looked at it again, and then it was just a sea of panic, and people were just falling and falling.”
As they ran, she said that a few meters behind her “I saw a girl who was shot and killed... I watched her die.”
He added that they first hid behind a dumpster before police took them to the basement of a store with other people, several of whom were injured.
When they were finally able to leave, Zoe told CNN, the parade route looked like “a battlefield.”
Chicago Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot noted through her Twitter account that “the tragedy in Highland Park is devastating” and has reported that the Chicago Police Department is offering assistance.
Several authorities attended the paradeincluding Illinois Governor Democrat Jay Robert Pritzker and Democratic Rep. Brad Schinder, who offered condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims.
