'It's just sad that he lost his life': Willowbrook man was killed in strip mall shooting
A 31-year-old Willowbrook man was killed in the mass shooting early Sunday at a strip mall near Willowbrook during a Juneteenth celebration that erupted in gunfire.
DuPage County Coroner Richard Jorgensen on Monday identified the shooting victim as Reginald Meadows. The coroner's office determined that his preliminary cause of death was a fatal gunshot wound to the abdomen.
What started as a peaceful gathering in a parking lot near Honeysuckle Rose Lane and Route 83 around 6 p.m. Saturday ended with an unknown number of people opening fire shortly after midnight Sunday morning. Authorities said at least 23 people were shot, including Meadows, and several others were hurt trying to flee the area.
"He was a really good man," a woman who only identified herself as Natalie said of Meadows, who knew one of her aunts. "He was very family-oriented. It's just sad that he lost his life."
A GoFundMe has been organized to help cover Meadows' funeral costs and assist his two young children. The page describes Meadows as a "beacon of love and strength" and a "loving father."
Sheriff's deputies had been monitoring the gathering, which some witnesses said numbered in the hundreds at a strip mall parking lot. But the deputies were called away around 12:25 a.m. for a fight at another location. As they were responding to that call, they heard gunshots at the Juneteenth celebration and immediately returned.
"The motive behind this incident is unclear," Eric Swanson, the sheriff's deputy chief, said during a news conference Sunday morning. "We transported numerous victims from the scene. Others just walked into area hospitals."
An Edward-Elmhurst Health spokesman said Monday two were treated and released from Edward Hospital in Naperville, two from Elmhurst Hospital and one from Edward's Plainfield campus.
On Monday, the sheriff's office said investigators are trying to locate additional witnesses and victims who may not have sought medical attention for their injuries.
Numerous officers were busy working the shooting scene Monday afternoon. Businesses in the strip mall were closed, and the parking lot was cordoned off with police tape. Cars were still parked in the lot, and debris was scattered across the asphalt. A shoe, charcoal grill and other belongings were left behind.
Witnesses described a chaotic scene as gunfire rang out in the crowded parking lot of the Somerset Plaza strip mall.
Nichelle Peterson said she took cover in her SUV with her aunt. All of her car windows were down and bullets whizzed past her in the car. The Chicago woman said she was grazed by at least four bullets.
"You could smell the smoke, and there were people underneath my car," she said.
Once the shooting stopped, she ran to a friend's nearby apartment. Another friend took her to the hospital to be treated for her injuries.
Peterson said she believes the celebration, which attracted hundreds, grew out of control.
"Maybe too many people around too many people," she said.
The sheriff's office said their shooting investigation has "continued nonstop" but released no additional details.
A call to the strip mall property owner was not immediately returned Monday afternoon. A sheriff's spokesman also did not immediately respond to a phone message.