The man accused of killing seven people and injuring dozens of others in an Independence Day parade on the outskirts of Chicago has admitted before authorities that he carried out the shooting, a prosecutor said during the first appearance of the suspect in court.
Robert Crimo, the 21-year-old suspect facing seven first-degree murder charges, appeared at the bail hearing via a video link from prison, two days after the Highland Park attack , Illinois.
Dressed in black and with his hair down to his shoulders, Judge Theodore Potkonjak denied Crimo bail.
County prosecutor Ben Dillon told the court the suspect confessed to the July 4 attack after being arrested.
No allegations were made at the hearing.
Crimo only spoke briefly to confirm that he did not have a lawyer.
A public defender was appointed to represent him.
“In fact, it poses a specific and current threat to the community,” the judge said in ordering Crimo to remain in prison.
Highland Park is the last American community forced to face a spasm of gun violence.
Authorities said Tuesday that Crimo planned the Illinois attack for weeks before climbing onto the roof of his rooftop sniper from an alley and firing more than 70 cartridges with a semi-automatic rifle at spectators. parade before going out dressed in women’s clothing and makeup to cover. her facial tattoos.
At least seven people were killed and more than three dozen were hospitalized with gunshot wounds and other injuries after the shooting.
The suspect was arrested Monday when he was arrested by police behind the wheel of his mother’s car, which authorities said he had driven to Wisconsin and returned to Illinois after the shooting.
A Smith & Wesson semi-automatic rifle, similar to an AR-15, used in the shooting, was found at the scene, and Crimo had a similar weapon in his mother’s car when he was arrested, according to county prosecutors.
If convicted of seven counts of first-degree murder, Crimo would face a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole, said Eric Rinehart, Lake County’s state attorney, in announcing charges Tuesday.
Rinehart said more charges are expected against Crimo, whose next appearance is scheduled for July 28.
At a press conference after the bail hearing, Rinehart said authorities questioned the suspect after reading him his legal rights, including the right to a lawyer.
“He went into detail about what he had done,” Rinehart said.
“He admitted what he had done.”
Investigators were reviewing videos Crimo had posted on social media that contained violent images.
Crimo’s parents said in a statement released by their lawyer that they are asking for privacy.
“We are all mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, and this is a terrible tragedy for many families, the victims, the parades, the community and our own,” they said.
“Our hearts, thoughts and prayers go to everyone.”
Sergeant Chris Covelli, a spokesman for the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, said Crimo legally bought a total of five weapons, rifles and pistols, despite having drawn the attention of law enforcement on two occasions previous for alleged behavior that suggests he might hurt himself or others.
The first instance was an emergency call on April 911, 2019 that reported that Crimo had attempted suicide, followed in September of that year by a police visit over alleged threats to “kill everyone” he had directed. to family members, Covelli said.
Police in response to the second incident confiscated a collection of 16 knives, a dagger and a sword accumulated by Crimo at his home, although no arrests were made, as authorities at the time had no cause. likely to stop him, Covelli said.
Crimo escaped the guarantees of an Illinois “red flag” law designed to prevent people who are considered to have violent tendencies from getting guns.
State police said the knives were returned to the family later the day they were confiscated after the father told authorities they were his and kept them in his son’s closet to store them.
State police acknowledged receiving a report from local authorities declaring Crimo a “clear and present danger” following the alleged September 2019 threat to his family.
State police said they closed the matter after determining that Crimo at the time had neither a gun owner’s ID card to revoke nor a request to deny.
None of the 2019 incidents appeared in four background checks conducted during their subsequent gun purchases, they added.