Highland Park shooting suspect: What we know about the man in custody
Global News
Robert E. Crimo III, who is in custody in connection with the mass shooting in Illinois on the Fourth of July, left a trail of violent imagery in social media posts and videos.
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Robert E. Crimo III, the person of interest in a mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, Ill., was an aspiring rapper whose social media videos and posts showed violent and ominous imagery often glorifying mass shootings and killings.
Crimo, 21, was taken into custody Monday after an hours-long manhunt when police pulled him over after a brief car chase. Police have not said what specific information led them to Crimo, but Chris Covelli, spokesperson for the Lake County Major Crimes Task Force, told reporters on Tuesday that police believe “Crimo pre-planned this attack for several weeks.”
Covelli also told reporters that Crimo dressed in women’s clothes to distract from his facial tattoos.
“During the attack, Crimo was dressed in women’s clothing and investigators do believe he did this to conceal his facial tattoos and his identity and help him during the escape,” Covelli said of the 21-year-old in custody.
Police said the shooter’s attack came from a rooftop above the parade route, firing into a crowd that was gathered to watch the Independence Day parade. Police believe the shooter used a ladder in an alley to climb up onto the roof.
“Following the attack, Crimo exited the roof, dropped his rifle and he blended in with the crowd and he escaped,” Covelli said.
“He blended right in with everybody else as they were running around almost as if he was an innocent spectator as well.”