Robert "Bobby" Crimo III, the Highland Park, Illinois shooting suspect who police say killed seven people during a Fourth of July parade on Monday, was able to receive a firearm owners identification (FOID) card in January 2020, after his father, Robert Crimo II, helped secure the gun permit in December 2019, according to authorities.
Also, according to Illinois State Police, at that time, there were no grounds, or at least an "insufficient basis to establish a clear and present danger and deny [Bobby Crimo] the FOID application."
However, it was reported on Wednesday that in September 2019, Highland Park police officials responded to an incident at the Crimo home, where Bobby Crimo had allegedly threatened to "kill everyone" in his family.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Highland Park authorities removed 16 knives, a sword, and a dagger from the Crimo home that day — but no guns were apparently found at the residence.
Also, no charges were pressed against Bobby Crimo.
In its Wednesday statement, the Illinois State Police said that Bobby Crimo answered no in September 2019, when asked by police officials if he was planning to harm himself or others.
For that same incident, Bobby Crimo's father also claimed the knives in the house were his and that the weapons were being stored in his own closet in a safe manner, per the statement.
Given that statement, Highland Park Police later returned the seized knives to Bobby Crimo's father.
The Illinois State Police also wrote, "[Bobby Crimo] passed four background checks when purchasing firearms, through the Firearms Transaction Inquiry Program (FTIP), which includes the federal National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS)."
The police then listed the four dates on which Bobby Crimo passed each background check, covering the 15-month period of June 2020 to September 2021.
Illinois State Police also noted that, at the time, the only offense on Bobby Crimo's record was an ordinance violation for possession of tobacco (2016).
The ISP statement says that Bobby Crimo did not have any mental health prohibitor reports filed by healthcare facilities or personnel in his background.
On Monday, Bobby Crimo allegedly killed seven and injured at least 20 others, while reportedly being stationed on a rooftop above the parade route.
On Tuesday, law enforcement officials said the shooting suspect had been planning Monday's incident for "several weeks."
Bobby Crimo brought a "high-powered rifle" similar to an AR-15 to the parade and fired more than 70 bullets, according to Christopher Covelli, a spokesman for the Lake County Major Crime Task Force.
At the time of this writing, Bobby Crimo has been charged with seven counts of first-degree murder, but more charges could follow in the coming days.
If convicted of all seven charges of first-degree murder, Bobby Crimo would face a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.
In the state of Illinois, the minimum age for securing a gun permit is 21 years old, or 18, if co-sponsored by an adult with a clear background check.
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