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05-07-2022
By SJA Jafri + Agencies
CHICAGO: The US police arrested another “White Terrorist” against severe charges of mass shooting in which a shooter opened fire on a crowd gathered to watch an Independence Day parade in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park at 10:15am on Monday, sending revelers fleeing in terror, authorities said.
The gunman apparently used a “high-powered rifle” to fire dozens of rounds from a perch atop a commercial building where he was “very difficult to see”, said Highland Park Police Commander Chris O’Neill.
Six people were killed in the shooting, with at least 36 others wounded. “Several” of the victims died at the scene, and the targets appeared to be “random”, according to Lake County Major Crime Task Force spokesman Christopher Covelli.
The NorthShore University Health Center received 26 patients after the attack, with all but one suffering from gunshot wounds, according to Dr Brigham Temple, medical director of emergency preparedness. He estimated at least four of those treated at the hospital were children.
In the wake of the attack, lawn chairs, strollers and bags of snacks littered the crime scene, where earlier families had staked out prime viewing places to watch the festivities.
A massive manhunt followed the attack, with police releasing a photo of a “person of interest” and his Honda Fit car. They warned he was likely armed and dangerous.
A rifle was recovered at the scene, although details of the weapon were not immediately released.
Hours after the attack and about 8km (five miles) away, a police officer pulled over the named person of interest, 21-year-old Robert E Crimo III.
Dozens of police also surrounded his home in Highland Park.
Crimo, who goes by the name Bobby, was an aspiring rapper with the stage name Awake the Rapper and has posted on social media dozens of videos and songs, some violent and depicting gun violence.
Crimo’s father, Bob, a longtime deli owner, ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Highland Park in 2019.
Crimo was not immediately charged.
Details of some those killed have begun to emerge
Nicolas Toledo, a man in his late 70s, was the first victim identified as of late Monday by his family. He was in a wheelchair and had not wanted to attend the parade, his family said in a statement to local media. But he required full-time care and his family said they had not wanted to miss the event.
“My grandfather Nicolas Toledo father of 8 and grandfather to many left us this morning July 4th, what was supposed to be a fun family day turned into a horrific nightmare for us all,” his granddaughter Xochil Toledo said in a statement shared by the family on social media.
Jacki Sundheim, a teacher at a local synagogue in Highland Park, was confirmed as another victim by The North Shore Congregation Israel, in an email to congregants.
“There are no words sufficient to express the depth of our grief for Jacki’s death and sympathy for her family and loved ones,” the synagogue said.
A third person killed was a Mexican national, Roberto Velasco, Mexico’s director for North American affairs, said on Twitter on Monday. He said two other Mexicans were wounded.
Authorities have not released the ages of the dead, but health workers have said the wounded ranged in age from eight to 85.
