Nov. 1 (UPI) — Authorities said two people were killed and more than a dozen others were injured in a shooting that erupted early Sunday at a Halloween party in Illinois.
The Will County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement that the shooting began at about 12:40 a.m. near a DJ booth that had been erected in the backyard of a residence in Joliet Township, which is about 40 miles southwest of Chicago.
More than a dozen people were shot and transported to local hospitals with two people dying at the scene, authorities said.
Four more people arrived at area hospitals suffering from life-threatening injuries from the shooting.
The investigation is in its early stages, but the sheriff’s office said witnesses have indicated there were two shooters on a porch overlooking the party of some 200 people when they opened fire.
The sheriff’s office said a sergeant on patrol in the area heard about a dozen shots and then saw more than 100 people fleeing from the residence.
The sergeant on foot responded to the residence as did additional officers and outside police agencies, authorities said.
“Initial responding personnel began performing life-saving measures and wound triage on numerous individuals on scene,” the sheriff’s office said. “While sheriff’s office personnel were on scene, additional shots were heard in the immediate area.”
Witnesses described one of the shooters to authorities as a Hispanic male of average size with facial hair who was wearing a red hoodie, dark pants and a black-billed hat. They said the other suspect was a “light-skinned Black male or Hispanic” of average size wearing a yellow hoodie and a ski mask.
The authorities are asking the public for help in identifying the suspects and for those in attendance to share with them cellphone pictures and videos taken during the party.
