Independence Day shooting suspect confesses to crime
2022-07-07 09:02:22Source: Xinhua News Agency
Xinhua News Agency, Chicago, July 6 (Reporter Xu Jing) The suspect in the “Independence Day” shooting in Highland Park, Illinois, USA, attended a bail hearing on the 6th and confessed to the crime, but the judge refused him bail.
Lake County Assistant State Attorney Ben Dillon, where Highland Park is located, said at a hearing on the 6th that the 21-year-old suspect, Robert Cremer III, admitted that he was in Highland Park on the morning of the 4th from the roof of a building. More than 80 bullets were fired at the crowd participating in the “Independence Day” parade.
Highland Park police said at a press conference on the 6th that Cremer III, disguised as a woman, drove away to Madison, Wisconsin after committing the crime, intending to create another shooting incident, and was arrested after returning to Illinois on the evening of the 4th. Police recovered five weapons from the suspect, including a rifle found at the crime scene, a rifle recovered from the suspect’s car when he was arrested, and a pistol found at his home. These guns were purchased through legal channels. Police have not stated the suspect’s motive.
Lake County State Attorney Eric Reinhart said at a news conference on the 5th that Cremer III was charged with seven counts of first-degree murder in the shooting that killed seven people. If convicted, he will be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In addition, the suspect also faces a number of other charges.
According to US media reports, the police visited the home of Cremer III twice in 2019: once he attempted suicide; once he threatened to kill the whole family. Despite his violent record, Cremer III got a gun license from the state of Illinois on his father’s sponsorship.
Seven people were killed and dozens injured in a shooting incident during an “Independence Day” parade in Highland Park on the 4th. After the incident, US President Biden said he was shocked by the shooting. Highland Park Mayor Rotlin and Illinois Governor Pritzker issued a statement condemning the gunman’s brutality.
According to the latest data from the US “Gun Violence Archives” website, there have been 320 “mass shootings” in which at least 4 people were killed and injured in the United States this year, and more than 22,000 people lost their lives due to gun violence.