Willowbrook mass shooting: 1 killed, 20 shot on Juneteenth celebration

One person died and at least 20 people were shot Sunday morning in the parking lot of an unrelated Willowbrook mall, officials said, during a gathering that witnesses said was a celebration of Juneteenth.

The shooting occurred shortly before 12:30 p.m. when a group of people gathered in a parking lot near Route 83 and Honeysuckle Rose Lane, DuPage County Sheriff's Deputy Chief Eric Swanson told reporters.

Sheriff's deputies in the area heard the shots and responded, according to Swanson, who said “at least 20” people were injured by the shots.

Some of the victims were taken to the hospital in DuPage, Will and Cook, he said, and some made it to the hospital themselves.

It's unclear what prompted the shooting or how many people are wanted, Swanson said. He did not reveal the age or sex of any of the victims.

A witness told ABC7-Chicago people had gathered for the Juneteenth celebration when the gunfire started.

“It was supposed to be like Juneteenth,” Markeshia Avery told the TV station. “We just started hearing gunshots so we went down until they stopped. They keep going. After that, we really split up.”

Swanson asked that anyone with information about what happened call (630) 407-2400.