CHICAGO (AP) — Police said Thursday that five people found dead in a ransacked house a day earlier had been slain, but they had no suspects and had not determined a motive.
But authorities said they are confident the killings were not random, said Chicago Police Commander Eddie Welch.
“They were definitely targeted,” he said at a news conference Thursday afternoon.
Further, he said, it was obvious that whoever carried out the crime spent a lot of time in the house on Chicago’s South Side.
“There was a lot of damage to this residence, at all levels of this residence,” Welch said.
Police comments on Wednesday that neighbors should not be concerned that a killer or killers were on the loose led to speculation that the crime was a murder-suicide, but Welch said police do not believe that’s the case.
Police believe there was more than one killer and said they are following up a host of leads and have not ruled out any motive, including whether the slayings might have been gang-related.
“The bottom line is we need the community’s help,” said Deputy Superintendent Steven Peterson.
Investigators believe all the victims, in their 20s or teens, knew one another. Their bodies were all found on the main level.
The slayings came to light Wednesday afternoon when a woman trying to visit the house found the bodies. There were signs of forced entry, police said.
The killings come at a time of heightened concern in the city about a recent spate of gun violence. The five deaths brought to 15 the number of people who have been shot to death in Chicago in less than a week.
Chicago Mayor Richard Daley said he plans to meet Friday with more than two dozen officials from religious groups, police, schools and social service agencies to talk about what’s causing the violence and how to stop it.
Associated Press writer Deanna Bellandi contributed to this report.
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