Two people were wounded, including a bystander, and a suspect was in custody Wednesday after he allegedly opened fire during a dispute at a Walmart Supercenter in Evergreen Park, Ill.
The incident unfolded shortly before 3 p.m. when cops said the suspect was dropped off by a car and walked toward the entrance of the store at the same time as his first victim.
The two men, who apparently knew each other, began arguing outside the store, Evergreen Park Police Chief Michael Saunders told reporters. The suspect then whipped out a gun and started firing, striking the 23-year-old man at least five times in the leg.
Bleeding profusely, the wounded man ran into the store and his assailant followed, firing indiscriminately. A bullet fragment or ricochet hit a 70-year-old woman in the foot just outside the entrance, police said.
Authorities had not released the identities of any of those involved as of Wednesday night.
Following the shooting, the wounded man was taken to a hospital where he underwent surgery, however his condition was unclear, Saunders told CBS Chicago. The woman was taken to a different hospital in fair condition, he said.
The alleged shooter ran out the back of the store and hid in a nearby yard, where the homeowner spotted him and alerted police. He was apprehended within about 15 minutes, Saunders told reporters.
The vehicle that dropped the gunman off was later located about five miles away, however cops weren’t yet sure who was driving it or whether they had any connection to the shooting.
An investigation remains ongoing, including into whether the shooting was a targeted attack on the wounded man.
Targeted or not, the gunfire sent frantic customers and employees scurrying through the busy store bustling with late-afternoon shoppers, though no one else was shot.
“I heard gunshots, and that’s when I was running for cover, and everybody was scattering everywhere,” a customer told CBS. “That’s all I heard was bow, bow, bow, gunshots.”
