Waukesha Christmas parade: investigators question
man after car speeds through crowd
Law enforcement sources believe driver was fleeing
from another crime scene or incident, reports say
Richard
Luscombe
@richlusc
Mon 22 Nov
2021 16.06 GMT
Investigators
were on Monday questioning a man after a vehicle ploughed into a Christmas
parade in Wisconsin, killing at least five people and injuring more than 40
adults and children.
Several of
those killed were believed to be members of a “Dancing Grannies” troupe which
was entertaining holiday crowds in Waukesha, a city about 20 miles west of
Milwaukee, on Sunday evening.
Teenage
girls dancing with a marching band were also hit, witnesses said, when the red
sports utility vehicle (SUV) sped through the parade.
A police
officer fired at the driver as the vehicle raced away. Authorities later
announced that “a person of interest” was taken into custody and the SUV
recovered.
On Monday
morning, news outlets reported that law enforcement sources believed the driver
was fleeing from another crime scene or incident, and that the parade incident
was not being investigated as related to domestic or international terrorism.
Additionally,
CNN said, sources indicated the incident was not related to Friday’s acquittal
of Kyle Rittenhouse, who was 17 when he killed two men and injured one during
anti-racism protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in August 2020. Kenosha is about 50
miles south-east of Waukesha.
NBC
reported that the individual in the SUV in Waukesha was involved in a knife
fight at a nearby park shortly before the incident. Multiple media outlets,
citing law enforcement sources, identified the man in custody as 39-year-old
Darrell Brooks.
Authorities
were planning a press conference for lunchtime on Monday.
On Sunday,
the Waukesha police chief, Dan Thompson, told reporters: “Some of the
individuals were children and there are some fatalities as a result of this
incident.”
Eleven
adults and 12 children were taken to hospital, Thompson said, while others made
their own way there. Thompson declined to give details about the casualties
until families were notified.
However, a
Facebook post on Monday by the Milwaukee Dancing Grannies troupe indicated that
some of its members were killed.
“Those who
died were extremely passionate Grannies. Their eyes gleamed … joy of being a
Grannie. They were the glue … held us together,” the post said.
“Our group
was doing what they loved, performing in front of crowds in a parade putting
smiles on faces of all ages, filling them with joy and happiness.”
Witnesses
described terrifying scenes as the Ford SUV burst through barricades at about
4.40pm on Sunday and entered the parade route, speeding towards the performers,
which included school bands and groups of dancing children. One said the driver
appeared to be swerving from side to side, apparently targeting those marching.
Corey
Montiho, a member of the Waukesha school board, told the Milwaukee Journal
Sentinel the driver hit his daughter’s dance team, a troupe of girls aged nine
to 15 performing with white pom-poms and wearing Santa hats.
“There were
pom-poms and shoes and spilled hot chocolate everywhere. I had to go from one
crumpled body to the other to find my daughter,” he said. “My wife and two
daughters were almost hit. Please pray for everybody. Please pray.”
Montiho
said he made eye contact with the man driving the vehicle, the Washington Post
reported. He described him as “calm and composed”.
“I saw
bodies and kids and dads not breathing,” he said.
Tony Evers,
the Wisconsin governor, ordered flags at half mast.
“Kathy and
I are praying for Waukesha tonight and all the kids, families and community
members affected by this senseless act,” Evers said.
“I’m
grateful for the first responders and folks who acted quickly to help, and we
are in contact with local partners as we await more information.”
The White
House said Joe Biden was receiving updates.
The city of
Waukesha announced a community fund to “support the needs of the families
impacted by [the] tragic incident at the Christmas parade”.
A number of
videos of the incident were posted to social media, which investigators were
looking at. One showed a young child dancing in the street as the SUV speeds
by, just a few feet away, before it hurtles into participants a few hundred
feet ahead.
Another,
showing the young dancers with pom-poms, ends with a group tending to a girl on
the ground. A third captures a police officer firing at the SUV. Thompson said
nobody was hit by those shots.
“Today our
community faced horror and tragedy in what should have been a community
celebration,” said the Waukesha mayor, Shawn Reilly.
“I’m deeply
saddened to know that so many in our community went to a parade but ended up
dealing with injury and heartache.”
The
Associated Press contributed to this report
.jpg)
.webp)
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário