Police say the two suspects who shot a gas station clerk during a robbery in Marengo last weekend are linked to numerous other armed robberies in the Chicago area.
The Aurora Police Department said on Friday that the suspects are linked to three armed robberies in their town.
One occurred around 7:30 p.m. Monday in the 100 block of South Broadway in Aurora and the second occurred around 8:45 p.m. Tuesday on that same block.
The third occurred around 9:55 p.m. Thursday in the 200 block of South Lake Street in Aurora.
The two suspects also tried robbing the Circle K Shell gas station, 600 North State Street in Marengo, around 3:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Marengo Police Department Sgt. Andrew Kjellgren said officers found an adult victim, identified as Brian Pemble, suffering from a gunshot wound.
Pemble was treated at the scene by paramedics and flown to Javon Bea Hospital in Rockford in stable condition, according to Marengo Fire Protection District Capt. Patrick Fanning.
The 35-year-old victim, an on-duty gas station clerk, was shot once in the leg during the armed robbery.
Kjellgren said the two men entered the store armed with handguns and tried robbing the business.
Suspect 1 is described as a male Hispanic, 25-35 years old, approximately 5-foot-4 or 5-foot 5, with a tattoo or mark on the right cheek, wearing a black hoodie with the text “DUCKIN BAD VIBES” on the chest and armed with a handgun.
Suspect 2 is described as a male Hispanic, 25-35 years old, approximately 5-foot-8 to 6-foot-1, wearing a black jacket with a stripe on the shoulder and an unidentified white logo on the right chest, black jeans, tan boots and armed with a handgun.
The suspects fled the scene after shooting Pemble and police are asking the public for information on the crime.
Pemble’s wife, Melissa, started a fundraiser to help support their family of five kids while the father recovers from his injuries.
Melissa Pemble, a Capron resident, started the GoFundMe account, which has raised nearly $10,000 as of Saturday.
Pemble said that her husband Brian is recovering from his injuries following the shooting, which occurred at his second job as a gas station clerk.
The money raised in the fundraiser will go towards medical bills and lost income.
Those who have information on any of the robberies are asked to call the Marengo Police Department at 815-568-7231 or the McHenry County Crime Stoppers at 800-762-7867.