The shootout occurred on Friday about 9:50pm when shots were fired near the Chicago Theater at the corner of Randolph and State streets.
At least one person was killed and eight others were injured in two separate shooting incidents in the downtown area in Chicago on Friday night, hours after the annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony, New York Times reported. The Chicago Police Department confirmed the mass shooting incident which occurred blocks away from Millennium Park in the city.
The shootout occurred on Friday about 9:50pm when shots were fired near the Chicago Theater at the corner of Randolph and State streets. Chicago police officers, who were on patrol at the time, said they heard gunshots being fired into a large group in the area.
The NYT report stated that police officers found seven victims, all aged between 13 and 17, who sustained gunshot wounds. Police added that six were in a good condition and a 13-year-old was in a fair condition. The officers on patrol responded to the shooting in the downtown area of the city.
Amid the shootout in the area, video footage aired by local news outlets showed a large group of people running away from the Chicago Theater and a few others taking shelter in a subway nearby. Police officers and first responders were also seen running through the streets of downtown Chicago, NYT reported.
After an hour, in a separate incident that took place five blocks from the Chicago Theatre, two men were shot and were transported to hospital, out of which police said that one of them died at the hospital. The age of the deceased man has not been revealed, the other person, an 18-year-old man, was in a serious condition as of Saturday morning.
US President Donald Trump also acknowledged the shootout in Chicago and criticised Illinois’ Democratic Governor JB Pritzker and Mayor Brandon Johnson for refusing the federal government’s aid “for a situation that could be quickly remedied.”
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote, “Massive crime and rioting in the Chicago Loop area. Multiple Police Officers attacked and badly injured. 300 people rioting, 6 victims shot, one critical and one DEAD. In the meantime, Governor Pritzker and the Low IQ Mayor of Chicago are refusing Federal Government help for a situation that could be quickly remedied. The people are chanting, BRING IN TRUMP!!!”
