July 04, (THEWILL) – At least six people have died and 24 wounded in a shooting at a July Fourth parade in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park.
Officers are searching for a suspect who likely fired on the festivities from a rooftop, US police say.
Highland Park Police Commander Chris O’Neill, the incident commander on scene, urged people to shelter in place as authorities searched for the suspect, described as a white male wearing a white or blue T-shirt.
Lake County Major Crime Task Force spokesman, Christopher Covelli said at a news conference that the gunman apparently opened fire on parade-goers from a rooftop using a rifle that was recovered at the scene. He however could not identified the building.
Covelli said police believe there was only one shooter and warned that he should still be considered armed and dangerous.
The Chicago Sun Times reported that the parade began at Highland Park near Chicago, but was suddenly halted 10 minutes later after shots were fired.
Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker said in a tweet that he was “closely monitoring the situation in Highland Park” and that Illinois State Police were assisting.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office said on Twitter that it was assisting Highland Park Police “with a shooting in the area of the Independence Day parade route”.
The sheriff’s office directed an AP reporter to contact Highland Park Police. The Police Department said no one was immediately available to discuss the incident.
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