Suspected Illinois shooter was related to most of 8 victims, police say

JOLIET, Ill. — A 23-year-old man sought in the deaths of eight people over two days in suburban Chicago died from a self-inflicted wound in Texas, authorities said.

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Authorities said Romeo Nance shot seven people at a pair of houses in Joliet, Illinois, on Sunday before opening fire at random on two other men. In total, authorities said he killed eight people and that he was related to most of the victims.

Nance died after being confronted by officials in Texas on Monday night, according to police.

Victims included 5 women, 3 men; most believed to be related to suspect

Update 4:20 p.m. EST Jan. 23: At a news conference on Tuesday, authorities said Nance was related to most, if not all, of the people found slain in shootings at a pair of homes in Joliet.

The shootings, which claimed seven lives, happened before investigators believe Nance opened fire at two men in separate shootings reported Sunday afternoon. One of the men, a 28-year-old originally from Nigeria, died of his wounds while the other survived.

Officials with the Will County Sheriff’s Office went to a home associated with Nance as part of their investigation. When no one answered the door, they went to another house linked to Nance across the street. There, Deputy Chief Dan Jungles said authorities noticed fresh blood and what appeared to be gunshots. Inside, they found two people dead and notified police.

Joliet Police Chief Bill Evans said the people inside the home were a 35-year-old man and a 47-year-old woman. At the house across the street, investigators found a 38-year-old man and four women and girls aged 14, 16, 20 and 38 dead.

Police did not release the names of the victims.

“We do know that Nance was related to the occupants of both residences,” Evans said Tuesday. “As to exactly what type of relationship there was within the family, right now we’re still sorting through that.”

The circumstances leading to the shooting remained unclear Tuesday.

“We can’t get inside his head,” Evans said. “We just don’t have any clue as to why he did what he did.”

Authorities continue to investigate.

“These investigations are still in their infancy and detectives are still gathering additional information and evidence must be processed by crime labs,” Jungles said. “As many cases like this we may never know the truth or the motives behind these senseless killings.”

— Theresa Seiger, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

Suspect dies in Texas

Update 11:41 p.m. EST Jan. 21: Romeo Nance, the 23-year-old man believed to be responsible for the deaths of seven people in the Chicago suburb of Joliet, Illinois, was found dead Monday night, authorities said.

Nance died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after being located by U.S. Marshals near Natalia, Texas, located approximately 30 miles southwest of San Antonio, WMAQ-TV reported.

According to Joliet police, officials learned that Nance had been located at about 8:30 p.m. CST, the television station reported. When confronted by law enforcement, Nance took his own life with a handgun, WMAQ reported.

The Lone Star Fugitive Task Force found Nance at a gasoline station in Natalia, according to WOAI-TV.

Seven people were killed in two homes in Joliet on Monday and Nance was the suspect, police said. A man gunned down the previous day was also tied to Nance, authorities said.

Joliet police said that five people were located in one home and two others were discovered in the other home, which was in the same neighborhood of Joliet, WFLD-TV reported.

Police also confirmed that the victims from both residences were related and that Nance knew the victims, according to the television station.

Original report: According to the Joliet Police Department, authorities are searching for Romeo Nance, who was driving a red Toyota Camry and was considered “armed and dangerous,” WLS-TV reported.

Detectives responded to the 2200 block of West Acres Road in Joliet, Illinois, at about 3 p.m. CST and discovered “multiple people” dead inside two homes, according to WFLD-TV. All of the victims were believed to have suffered fatal gunshot wounds, police told the television station.

Police have not identified the victims, their ages or genders, WLS reported. They also did not reveal whether there was a possible relationship between the suspect and the victims.

“The information remains fluid and ever-changing as this investigation progresses,” police said in a Facebook post.

Officials with the Will County Sheriff’s Office said it was attempting to locate the same vehicle in connection with two shootings that occurred in the area on Sunday, WMAQ-TV reported.

According to authorities, at around 4:27 p.m. CST on Sunday, deputies responded to a shooting at the Pheasant Run Apartments in unincorporated Joliet and found a 28-year-old man bleeding from the head with an apparent gunshot wound, according to the television station.

The victim later died from his injuries, WBBM-TV reported. He was identified as Toyosi Bakare, according to WGN-TV.

That shooting occurred 10 minutes after a separate shooting in the area. A 42-year-old man suffered injuries that were not considered to be life-threatening after he was shot in the leg, according to WMAQ.

According to the Will County Sheriff’s Office, the vehicle Nance had been driving was spotted at both of those locations, WTVO-TV reported.

An investigation into Monday’s shooting is ongoing.

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