Illinois police have released chilling new details about the mass shooting on a Chicago-area train that left four homeless people dead.
Officials say CCTV footage shows the four victims were likely sleeping in different parts of the train and that there were no fights or other confrontations before the shooting at the Forest Park CTA Blue Station in Forest Park, Illinois.
They also identified an eyewitness using CCTV video and are working to track down the individual, according to NBC Chicago.
Officers responded to the scene after a 911 call Monday morning and cleared the train of passengers before boarding.
Four victims were found with gunshot wounds. Three of them were pronounced dead at the scene and a fourth died at the hospital. Police said all of the victims appeared to be homeless people who were riding the train.
Officials say CCTV footage shows the four victims were likely sleeping in different parts of the train and that there were no fights or other confrontations before the shooting at the Forest Park CTA Blue Station (pictured) in Forest Park, Illinois.
Pictured above are officers investigating the scene of a shooting that left four homeless people dead.
Forest Park Mayor Rory Hoskins stands outside the closed Forest Park Blue Line train station in Forest Park, Illinois, after holding a press conference regarding four people who were fatally shot on the train early Monday morning, September 2, 2024.
A suspect fled the scene but was later arrested on a CTA Pink Line train in Chicago, police said. Alphabet 7. The suspect was located thanks to surveillance images.
A gun was recovered during the arrest, police said, but it is unclear whether it was the weapon used in the attack.
Authorities said the incident appears to be isolated and random in nature and does not pose any threat to the public.
“The victims were all passengers on the train early this morning,” said Forest Park Deputy Chief Chris Chin.
The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) said in a statement: ‘While this was an isolated incident, this heinous and outrageous act of violence should never have happened, even on a public transit train.
‘As soon as this matter was reported, CTA immediately deployed resources to assist Forest Park Police in their investigation into the matter, including reviewing all potential security camera footage, which proved vital in assisting local law enforcement.’
Police responded to the scene after a 911 call Monday morning about a shooting at the Forest Park CTA Blue Line station at 711 Desplaines Avenue.
Elmwood Park Police, Berwyn Police, and Cicero Police patrol cars are parked in the parking lot of the Forest Park Blue Line train station in Forest Park, Illinois, after four people were fatally shot on the train early Monday morning, September 2, 2024.
The CTA added: ‘We commend both the Forest Park Police Department for their thorough and collaborative efforts in providing information to partner agencies; as well as the Chicago Police Department, whose quick actions led to the arrest of a suspect in this matter.
‘CTA will continue to work with local authorities as part of this ongoing investigation.’
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact Forest Park police at 708-366-2425.
Forest Park Mayor Rory Hoskins said the shooting was an “outlier,” but added that first responders are frequently dispatched to the Blue Line station, calling for more security resources.
Less than a week ago, the CTA announced it would implement an artificial intelligence-based program that would notify police when guns are detected at train stations.
Chicago crime statistics show the city hit its highest murder rate in a decade in 2023, with 617 deaths last year alone, the most in the nation for a major city.
Forest Park Deputy Police Chief Christopher Chin holds a news conference outside the Forest Park CTA station, following a shooting, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, in Forest Park.
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Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson says he “inherited” the city’s growing immigration crisis and lashed out at the previous administration of Lori Lightfoot.
Johnson criticized the Lightfoot administration at a news conference Tuesday to announce the Unity Initiative, an interfaith partnership aimed at getting sleeping immigrants out of police stations and into shelters.
Johnson told reporters: “The international crisis that I inherited six months ago, I made very clear: we are going to get people out of police districts, we are going to get women and children out of flats and rough sleeping, and we are going to create spaces that provide more dignity.”
The Windy City has come under severe pressure after 20,000 migrants flooded into the city over the past 14 months, triggering a crisis. Many of them were bused north from the southern border, which has been overwhelmed by migrants crossing from Mexico.
In Chicago, thousands of asylum seekers are being held in police stations and airports because the local government has run out of space to house them.
