Prosecutors say a convicted felon nicknamed “Savage” opened fire on an occupied car in the parking lot of Six Flags in Gurnee after a victim, who was not even in that car, looked at him weirdly.
The Gurnee Police Department responded around 8:20 p.m. on July 7 to Six Flags Great America, 1 Great America Parkway, for a report of shots fired.
Gurnee Police Department Public Information Officer Shawn Gaylor said officers arrived and did not find any victims injured.
Officers located evidence at the scene confirming a shooting had occurred in the parking lot.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Mary Vukovich said officers located three spent shell casings near poles 31 and 32.
Officers spoke with one of the victims who stated he was with his girlfriend and they were leaving the park.
The two observed an Asian male, who was with another individual, staring at him, Vukovich said.
One of the subjects told the victim, “What the f–k are you looking at?” and “I’ll beat the f–k outta you.”
They began to argue, which resulted in the other man saying, “I got something for you.”
Vukovich said one of the two men began to throw up gang signs at the victim. The Asian male suspect reappeared holding a fanny pack before pulling out a black gun.
The suspect flashed a green laser, which was mounted on the gun, toward the victim’s direction.
The victim and his girlfriend quickly got into their car and began to leave the area, Vukovich said.
The victim’s friend, who was also leaving the park, was driving his car past the suspect, who then opened fire on the car.
The suspect knew the victim and his friend were there at the park together but the gunman opened fire despite the friend not even being involved in the verbal altercation with the two unknown men, Vukovich said.
The friend told officers he was driving and looking for an exit in the parking lot when he saw the two unknown males standing near a black Volkswagen.
One of the men pulled out the gun, which had a green laser, and started shooting at the friend, Vukovich said.
The victim then drove through the yellow chain barricade that surrounded the parking lot. His vehicle was struck by a bullet in the front passenger door and shattered glass, Vukovich said.
Investigators used the Flock camera system to locate the Volkswagen and identify one of the two unknown men involved.
That subject told investigators the gunman was his friend, nicknamed “Savage,” Vukovich said. “Savage” was identified as Sarong Gonzalez, 33, of Chicago.
Gonzalez was positively identified by both victims as the suspect after they were shown surveillance photos from the park and a booking photo lineup.
Phone records also placed Gonzalez at Six Flags that evening, Vukovich said. His Nissan was captured on the Flock camera system.
Body camera footage from the Chicago Police Department arresting Gonzalez on August 21 helped aid in the positive identification based on tattoos, as well as him wearing some of the same clothes and the same backpack as he did in the Six Flags surveillance video.
A woman told Lake and McHenry County Scanner she was at the amusement park with her daughters and they did not realize what was happening until they saw lots of emergency vehicles while they were on the upper level of the carousel.
She said she saw a dozen police cars parked along the preferred lot and many officers were searching the area, one with a canine and another with a large gun guarding the lot.
“It was pretty intense. A couple of families were off to the side, waiting for the lot to be cleared so they could get to their vehicles,” the woman said.
Gonzalez was charged last month with aggravated discharge of a firearm, felon in possession of a weapon enhanced and two counts of aggravated unlawful possession of a firearm with prior conviction.
An arrest warrant was issued for him and he has since been taken into custody.
Gonzalez was ordered held in the Lake County Jail following a detention hearing in front of Lake County Judge Michael Nerheim where the state’s attorney’s office filed a petition to detain him.
“A firearm that was discharged in the direction of and striking a vehicle that was occupied. The firearm was also discharged in the parking lot of Six Flags during the summer where multiple other people were present,” Vukovich said.
Gonzalez is a convicted felon with a prior felony conviction for aggravated unlawful use of a weapon in Cook County.
He is scheduled to appear in court again on October 29 for an arraignment hearing.