Police say a 16-year-old boy has died after he was shot on the sidewalk in Highland Park Sunday morning by a gunman who remains on the run.
The Highland Park Police Department and Highland Park Fire Department responded around 11:30 a.m. Sunday to the 2300 block of Green Bay Road for a shooting.
Emergency crews arrived to find a 16-year-old Highwood boy who had been shot, according to Lake County Major Crime Task Force Spokesman Christopher Covelli.
The victim was walking on the sidewalk when he was approached by the offender.
The two engaged in a brief conversation before the offender produced a firearm and shot the victim, Covelli said.
The boy was transported to Highland Park Hospital and pronounced dead.
Police established a large perimeter around the scene in an attempt to locate the offender.
Witnesses described the offender as a male dressed in all black that fled on a bicycle.
Further investigation showed he likely fled on foot, not on a bicycle, following the shooting, Covelli said.
A police canine tracked the offender’s scent but the scent was lost at a nearby roadway.
Police requested the assistance of the Lake County Major Crime Task Force to assist with the investigation.
Covelli said preliminary details indicate the shooting was targeted and not random.
Law enforcement reopened Green Bay Road, which was completely shut down, around 5:15 p.m. Sunday following the investigation.
Covelli said there is no known threat to the community.
The investigation remains ongoing by Lake County Major Crime Task Force investigators and Highland Park police detectives.