Officers in Illinois were searching Sunday for two suspects who are believed to have opened fire at a Halloween party, killing two people and injuring more than a dozen.
The Will County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement that the shooting took place on Sunday morning at a house party in Joliot, southwest of Chicago, which was attended by about 200 people.
The sheriff’s office said shots were fired near a DJ booth in the backyard.
Citing witnesses, the sheriff’s office said one of the men – described as a Hispanic male wearing a red hoodie – was ejected from an elevated porch upon seeing the crowd.
The second shooter was described as a light-skinned man wearing a ski mask and yellow hoodie.
Two people were declared brought dead on the spot. Both have not been identified. Four others were taken to local hospitals, the statement said.
Additional information about the incident was not immediately available.
The gunmen opened fire in less than an hour after a separate shoot One person was killed and nine injured at a Halloween party in East Texas. In that incident also a suspect has not been identified.
when did the shooting happen experts have called The “unprecedented” increase in murders in the United States. According to FBI data released last month, the category of violent crime increased by 30 percent last year — although the country’s homicide rate is still lower than it was in the 1990s.
The data shows that rape, aggravated assault and other violent crimes increased by 5 percent during the same period.
Experts aren’t sure what’s behind the rise in crime, although some have pointed to the pandemic and gun ownership as possible explanations.
Deon J. Hampton has contributed.