'It just didn't stop': Witnesses recount shooting that left 6 dead at Highland Park 4th of July parade
HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. (CBS 58) -- Police have arrested a person of interest in connection to the Highland Park shooting.
Robert Crimo III was taken into custody in Lake Forest, which is just north of Highland Park. The FBI said he was wanted for his alleged role, but they have not named him an official suspect.
An angry and heartbroken crowd gathered outside the Highland Park police station where the person of interest was taken after being arrested in nearby Lake Forest.
For over eight hours, Robert Crimo III was on the run, but he didn't go far.
Screams and gunshots replaced the sound of laughter at this Fourth of July parade in Highland Park.
"It just didn't stop. Kept on shooting and shooting and then we saw people start falling into the middle and people start running," said witness Alexander Sandoval.
Witness accounts reveal the terror inflicted on this community just 15 miles north of Chicago. Alexander Sandoval took extreme measures under pressure to keep his family safe.
"We ran around the corner and I put my son and my brother and our puppy in the garbage can, dumpster, and I asked somebody to watch them because I had to go back and look for my family," said Sandoval.
"Honestly I think I blacked it out. So I saw the cop running and waving his arms and everybody and I turned to her and I said 'something's happening, we need to go,'" Amanda Levy.
At 2nd and Center, a gunman opened fire from a rooftop, aiming on the crowd with a high-powered rifle, later recovered by police. Six people were killed. At least 24 others wounded, including children.
"And then all of a sudden it kind of just stopped and we saw the Highland Park band running," said Lauren Sach.
When Lauren Sachs made it home safe she wanted to help, and posted a message opening her home to anyone who needed it.
"When we were leaving and like running, nobody knew where to go," said Sachs.
"On a day that we came together to celebrate community and freedom, we're instead mourning the loss, the tragic loss of life and struggling with the terror that was brought upon us," said Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering.
Those who live here tell us they knew the person of interest, 22-year-old Robert Crimo III, from Highland Park High School.
Eight hours after the mass shooting, a flurry of squads flew out of the command post toward Route 41.
"Robert CrImo III was spotted by a North Chicago unit on Buckley and 41 in his vehicle, the vehicle we were looking for. He initiated a traffic stop on that subject, that subject did flee," said Highland Park Police Chief Lou Jogmen.
Police stopped Crimo in Lake Forest and took him into custody without incident. Local police have been joined by the FBI and Lake County Major Crimes Task Force, and all were thanked with meals provided by a Kenosha barbecue spot that drove down with food.
"I called my team and I said 'hey, we're gonna close one of the stores down. Let's take all the food that we would've served today, let's cook it.' And so we prepared it in two hours, drove down here and dropped it off," said Kris Schoenberger of Barbecue Productions in Kenosha.
Crimo III is being interviewed by Highland Park police. The FBI has a tipline, it's 1-800-CALL FBI.
A number of nearby suburbs made the decision by early afternoon to cancel their Independence Day festivities out of an abundance of caution, including Libertyville and Buffalo Grove. Six Flags Great America also said they would close early.