The person suspected of shooting into the crowd of spectators during the suburban Chicago parade, killing six people, was taken into custody in Lake Forest Monday evening after a nearly eight-hour manhunt and brief police pursuit.
Authorities said the suspect’s vehicle was located in North Chicago and officers attempted to stop him before he fled the scene, leading police on a brief pursuit before coming to a stop.
He was taken into custody “without incident,” police said, and taken to the Highland Park Police Department for questioning. No charges had been filed as of Tuesday morning.
NorthShore University Health System said Tuesday at least 38 people were taken to its hospitals, up from the 26 who were treated immediately following the shooting. Eight of those patients remained hospitalized Tuesday, two of them at NorthShore’s Highland Park hospital, five at its Evanston location and one at its Glenbrook location.
“A vast majority suffered gunshot wounds and the remaining sustained injuries as a result of the ensuing chaos at the parade,” NorthShore Highland Park Hospital said Monday.
The shooting happened at 10:14 a.m. CT in the area of Central Avenue and 2nd Street in downtown Highland Park during the city’s Fourth of July parade, authorities said.
In separate social media videos, several gunshots could be heard, followed by a pause and another round of gunfire. In some videos, more than 50 shots are heard.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker asked for prayers for the families of the deceased and for those who were injured in the shooting.
“There are no words for the kind of monster who lies in wait and fires into a crowd of families with children celebrating a holiday with their community,” Pritzker said in a statement. “There are no words for the kind of evil that robs our neighbors of their hopes, their dreams, their futures. There are no words I can offer to lift the pain of those they leave behind. Please know that our state grieves with you, that MK and I grieve with you.”
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker spoke after the mass shooting in Highland Park, Ill., on the Fourth of July.
Dr. David Baum, who attended the parade, helped treat those who were injured in the shooting.
“The bodies that I saw, it was not an image that anyone who’s not a physician would have an easy time processing,” said Dr. Baum.
“There were people who were immediately killed with horrific gunshot wounds.”
A large police presence from the state and neighboring suburban Chicago departments was seen along the parade route.
Independence Day parades and events across the north suburbs were canceled following the shooting.
Video appears to show the moment the person of interest connected to the mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park was arrested Monday evening.
Larry Bloom, who was in the area when shots began, said at first spectators thought the “popping” sound was part of the parade.
“You heard like a ‘pop, pop, pop,’ and I think everybody kinda thought maybe it was a display on one of the floats and then it just opened up,” Bloom said.
“I was screaming and people were screaming,” Bloom said. “They were panicking and they were just scattering and I, you know, we didn’t know. You know, it was right on top of us.”
Six people were killed Monday morning in a shooting at Highland Park’s Independence Day parade in Illinois. A person of interest has been apprehended.
