Crime & Law
2 Custodians Dead After Shooting Inside CPS School
(WTTW News)
Two custodians are dead after a shooting Monday afternoon inside a Garfield Ridge neighborhood elementary school.
Mark Twain Elementary principal Matthew Moline confirmed the shooting in a letter to families Tuesday, stating that “shots were fired inside our school building,” though he added that no students were present in the building at the time.
“I am sorry to share that members of our school community were impacted,” he wrote.
According to the Chicago Police Department, a 48-year-old woman and 63-year-old man were found unresponsive inside the school, located in the 5100 block of S. Lotus Ave., just after 3:30 p.m. Monday.
Both had sustained single gunshot wounds to their heads and were pronounced dead at Christ Hospital, police said.
School staff immediately contacted the CPD and Chicago Public Schools ‘Office of Safety and Security for support.
SEIU Local 73, the union that represents CPS custodial employees, confirmed both were custodians at the school.
“The only facts we know right now are that two families have lost a loved one and our prayers are with their families, and the staff, students, and families at Mark Twain Elementary School,” SEIU Local 73 Executive Vice President Trumaine Reeves said in a statement.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the older custodian was identified as the shooter in a Chicago Police Department report, which stated he had been upset because he was due to be relocated from the school.
He allegedly shot the woman, then went into an office room and shot himself, the Sun-Times reported.
“We know that this news will be deeply concerning to our families and staff,” Moline wrote in his letter. “We will work to provide additional information to the school community as the investigation proceeds.”
