Romeo Nance, a 23-year-old man, wanted as a suspect in the fatal shooting of eight people and injuring several others in suburban Chicago, apparently shot himself fatally after an encounter with law enforcement in Texas, the police said.
Romeo Nance had been located by US Marshals near Natalia, Texas, and it was "believed that he took shot himself following a confrontation with Texas police officials." police said on Monday night (local time).
The Medina County Sheriff's Office in Texas said on Facebook that the agency received a call about a person suspected in the Chicago killings heading into the county on Interstate 35. A standoff then occurred between Nance and police from multiple agencies at a gas station, where Nance shot himself, the sheriff's office said.
"At approximately 8:30 PM this evening, the Joliet Police Department learned that Nance had been located by US Marshals near Natalia, Texas at which time it is believed that Nance took his own life with a handgun following a confrontation with Texas law enforcement officials," it said in a post.
Nance was a suspect in fatal shooting of eight people at three locations in the Chicago suburbs. The police initiated a search after they found one man slaying and the two others wounded in two Chicago-area shootings. The search led police to the discovery of two more crime scenes in Illinois' Joliet, where seven members of one family were found dead in two houses across the street from each other.
{{/usCountry}}Nance was a suspect in fatal shooting of eight people at three locations in the Chicago suburbs. The police initiated a search after they found one man slaying and the two others wounded in two Chicago-area shootings. The search led police to the discovery of two more crime scenes in Illinois' Joliet, where seven members of one family were found dead in two houses across the street from each other.
{{/usCountry}}During the investigation, Joliet Police detectives regarded Nance as armed and dangerous, who was believed to be driving a red Toyota Camry Q730412.
"This is an active investigation in which we are working with our area law enforcement partners. Nance should be regarded as armed and dangerous. Anyone with information regarding Nance and this vehicle is encouraged to contact their local law enforcement agency. Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to contact the Joliet Police Department," the police said.
Police said the motive of the killings was not clear, but said Nance knew the victims.
"I've been a policeman 29 years. This is probably the worst crime scene I've ever been associated with," Joliet Police Chief William Evans said about two hours before the search for the suspect had ended.
The authorities shared no further details while the circumstances and sequence of events surrounding the killings in Illinois likewise remained sketchy on Monday night.
(With inputs from Reuters, AP)