July 4 Parade Gunman Slammed With More 7 Counts Of Murder
Robert Crimo

21-year-old Robert Crimo who had allegedly opened fire on a July 4 parade in a Chicago suburb, killing seven people and massively wounded others while disguised in women’s clothing has been slammed with more additional charges which includes seven counts of first-degree murder on Tuesday, prosecutors have revealed.

He had been arrested Monday, hours after the attack on an Independence Day crowd.

“There will be more charges,” Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart told reporters.

“We anticipate dozens of more charges centered around each of the victims.”

Read Also: 30 Shot, 6 Dead In US As July 4 Parade Turns Bloody

Police spokesman Christopher Covelli had also revealed that the death toll had risen to seven on Tuesday after one of the victims died in hospital. More than 35 people were wounded.

Among the dead were Kevin McCarthy, 37, and his wife, Irina, 35 — the parents of a two-year-old boy who was found wandering alone after the shooting, according to CBS News.

Covelli had also revealed that no motive had been established for the attack, which sent panicked parade-goers fleeing for their lives.

“We do believe Crimo pre-planned this attack for several weeks,” and that he acted alone, he said.

“We have no information to suggest at this point it was racially motivated, motivated by religion or any other protected status,” he added.

He said Crimo has a history of mental health issues and threatening behavior.

Police had been called to Crimo’s home twice in 2019: once to investigate a suicide attempt and the second time because a relative said he had threatened to “kill everyone” in the family, he said.

Police removed 16 knives, a dagger and a sword from the home but did not make any arrests, he said.

Covelli said Crimo used a fire escape to access the roof of a building overlooking the parade route and fired more than 70 rounds from a rifle “similar to an AR-15” — one of several guns he had purchased legally.

“Crimo was dressed in women’s clothing and investigators believe he did this to conceal his facial tattoos and his identity and help him during the escape with the other people who were fleeing the chaos,” he said.

 

 

Africa Today News, New York

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