Sickening update on 'heinous' Chicago train mass shooting that left four homeless people dead

Police in Illinois have released sickening new details on the mass shooting on a train in the Chicago area that left four homeless people dead. 

Officers say that CCTV footage shows that the four victims were likely asleep in different parts of the train and that there were no fights or other confrontations prior to the shooting at the Forest Park CTA Blue Station in Forest Park, Illinois.

They also identified an eyewitness using the CCTV video and are working on tracking the individual down, according to NBC Chicago. 

Officers responded to the scene after a 911 call on Monday morning and cleared the train of passengers before getting on. 

They discovered four victims with gunshot wounds. Three of them were pronounced dead at the scene and a fourth died at the hospital. Police said all the victims appeared to be homeless people riding the train. 

Officers say that CCTV footage shows that the four victims were likely asleep in different parts of the train and that there were no fights or other confrontations prior to the shooting at the Forest Park CTA Blue Station (pictured) in Forest Park, Illinois

Pictured above are officers investigating the scene of the shooting that left four homeless people dead

Forest Park Mayor Rory Hoskins stands outside the Forest Park Blue Line train station in Forest Park, Ill., which remains closed, after giving a news conference about four people who were fatally shot on the train early Monday, September 2, 2024

A suspect fled the scene but was later taken into custody on a CTA Pink Line train in Chicago, as reported by ABC 7. The suspect was tracked down using surveillance footage.

A gun was recovered during the arrest, police said, but it is unclear whether this was the weapon used in the attack. 

Officials said the incident appears to be isolated and random in nature. They said that there is no further threat to the public. 

'The victims, they were all passengers on the train early this morning,' said Forest Park Deputy Chief Chris Chin. 

The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) said in a statement: 'Although this was an isolated incident, this heinous and egregious act of violence should never have occurred, nonetheless on a public transit train.

'As soon as this matter was reported, CTA immediately deployed resources to assist the Forest Park Police in their investigation into the matter, including review of all possible security camera footage, which proved to be vital in aiding local enforcement.'

Police responded to the scene after a 911 call on Monday morning about a shooting at the Forest Park CTA Blue Line station at 711 Desplaines Avenue

Squad cars of Elmwood Park police, Berwyn police and Cicero police are parked in the parking lot of the Forest Park Blue Line train station in Forest Park, Ill., after four people were fatally shot on the train early Monday, September 2, 2024

The CTA added: 'We commend both the Forest Park Police Department for their thorough and collaborative efforts to provide information to partner agencies; as well as the Chicago Police Department whose quick actions led to the apprehension of a suspect in this matter. 

'CTA will continue to work with local law enforcement as part of this ongoing investigation.' 

Anyone with information on the shooting has been asked to contact Forest Park police at 708-366-2425. 

Forest Park Mayor Rory Hoskins said the shooting was an 'outlier' but said first responders are frequently sent to the Blue Line station, calling for more safety resources.

Less than a week ago the CTA announced it would implement an AI-based program that would notify police when guns are detected at train stations. 

Chicago crime stats show the city hit a decade high for murders in 2023, seeing 617 deaths just last year, the most in the nation for a major city.

Forest Park police Deputy Chief Christopher Chin gives a news briefing outside the CTA Forest Park station, after a shooting, Monday, September 2, 2024, in Forest Park

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson claims he 'inherited' the city's spiraling migrant crisis at a press conference announcing new initiative to tackle the problem

Chicago's Mayor Brandon Johnson claims he 'inherited' the city's spiraling migrant crisis and lashed out at Lori Lightfoot's former administration. 

Johnson criticized Lightfoot's administration at a press conference on Tuesday held to announce the Unity initiative, an interfaith partnership aimed at bringing sleeping migrants out of police stations and into shelters. 

Johnson told reporters that 'the international crisis that I inherited six months ago, I've made it very clear we are going to move people out of police districts, women and children who are living on floors and sleeping outside that we're going to create spaces that provide more dignity.'

Windy City has come under strain after the city was inundated by 20,000 migrants over the last 14 months, triggering a crisis. Many were bused north from the southern border, which has been overwhelmed by migrants crossing from Mexico.

In Chicago, thousands of asylum seekers are staying at police stations and airports as the local government has run out of space to house them.