Suspect in killings of 8 people in Chicago area has died in Texas, police say

A man suspected of killing eight people, most of whom were his relatives, in Chicago-area shootings died after turning a gun on himself following a confrontation with federal law enforcement, police say.

Romeo Nance, 23, was found Monday by US Marshals near Natalia, Texas – more than 1,000 miles from where seven victims were found shot to death Sunday in two homes in the south Chicago suburb of Joliet, according to the Joliet Police Department. Authorities believe Nance is also linked to a Sunday shooting in Will County, Illinois, that left a 28-year-old dead, Joliet Police Chief Bill Evans said Monday.

Nance shot himself with a handgun after being confronted by officials, police said.

Investigators have yet to determine Nance’s motive, but Nance was related to “if not all, a vast majority of the people” found dead in the homes, Evans said during a Tuesday news conference.

The victims have not been publicly identified. They range in age from 14 to 47 years old, Evans said.

In one residence, authorities found the bodies of two girls, aged 14 and 16, two women, aged 20 and 38, and a 38-year-old man, according to Evans. In the other residence, a 47-year-old woman and a 35-year-old man were found dead.

Police gather near the scene where eight people were found dead in Joliet, Illinois.

At a separate scene in Will County, deputies found a person “with blood coming out of his head, and upon deputy’s arrival, they located a gunshot wound,” Will County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief of Operations Dan Jungles said.

Jungles said the eighth victim, 28-year-old Toyosi Bakare, was taken to a hospital and died of his injuries. Bakare was from Nigeria and had been living in Will County, which includes Joliet, for three years, Jungles said.

“It is believed that the weapon used in this incident was a 9-millimeter handgun,” Jungles said in Tuesday’s news conference. He added robbery was not a motive as money was found in the area near where Bakare was located.

Nance’s car – a red Toyota Camry – was seen at the scene and the sheriff’s department began to surveil Nance’s last-known address, hoping to find the vehicle, Jungles said.

After no sign of Nance or his car, deputies knocked on the door of a home, but received no response, Jungle said at a news conference.

“When they received no response, they knew the house across the street was related to the individuals that resided at that house and they walked over there,” Jungle said.

At the second home, deputies saw blood on the door and entered to find two dead victims, he said. Five more victims were found in the first home, though it is unclear how long they had been dead, he said.

“I’ve been a policeman 29 years. This is probably the worst crime scene I’ve ever been associated with,” Evans said at the news conference.

Nance is also believed to be connected to another shooting on Sunday, according to authorities.