Bloodshed in Chicago as ten are killed in a spate of shootings

Chicago saw its worst weekend of ‘gang-related’ shootings so far this year as ten people were killed and dozens injured on the city’s streets.

There were 52 people shot following a string of violent attacks that took place between Friday and Sunday evening.

Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson gave a press conference on Monday morning and said there was ‘a despicable level of violence’.

He said: ‘Weekends like this remind us all of the challenges that we face and that they are complex and profound.’

He hit out at the ‘multiple gang-related attacks’ from Friday night that was part of an increase in violence particularly on the west side of the city.

Following the days of violence, Chicago Police confirmed that 18 people had been arrested on gun-related charges and as many as 92 weapons had been seized -double the number of that on a typical weekend.

While calling on support from the community, Superintendent Johnson said: ‘We take these shootings seriously, and there is a heightened sense of urgency and care when it comes to gun violence in this city.’

He said he will increase the number of officers doing foot and bicycle patrols in Chicago.

One incident, which occurred on Saturday morning, saw four people shot near Chicago’s Northwestern University and left two men, aged 28 and 25, dead according to ABC Chicago station WLS.

The two survivors, a 28-year-old man and 26-year-old man, told the news station that they had been standing near a van when bullets were fired at them and they were wounded.

At about 4am on Sunday morning a woman, 26, was fatally wounded in the 4900-block of South Princeton Avenue in Fuller Park after gunshots were fired at her chest. 

She was rushed to the University of Chicago Medical Center where she was pronounced dead.

Hours later, a 22-year-old and a 25-year-old man were shot and killed by people in another car as they drove through the 100-block of West North Avenue in Old Town. 

The shooters, who fled the scene in their vehicle, left the 22-year-old with a shot to the back of his head and the 25-year-old with multiple gunshot wounds.

Both men were pronounced dead at the scene.      

Following the bloodshed, Mayor of Chicago Lori Lightfoot condemned the spate of shootings and said she would be arranging a meeting with the head of Chicago Police.

Speaking to ABC7 News  on Monday Mayor Lightfoot said: ‘I’m bringing in the superintendent, the deputy chief of patrol and any other commander whose district saw an uptick in violence over the weekend and we’re gonna have what I’m gonna call Accountability Mondays.’