FBI stepping in to help search for Tinley Park mall shooter
Federal authorities are assisting a suburban Chicago police department's search for a gunman who shot five women to death at a Lane Bryant clothing store during an apparent botched robbery, the FBI said Monday.
Tinley Park police, meanwhile, offered few details about their investigation or the suspect, who was described as a stocky black man, about 5-foot-9, who wore a black winter coat, knit cap and dark pants during the Saturday attack.
They also have refused to answer questions about a reported sixth victim -- and potential witness -- who survived.
Local authorities apparently hope the FBI can help.
More Coverage Stories FBI stepping in to help search for Tinley Park mall shooter Family claims daughter survived Tinley Park shooting Family members mourn 5 women killed in clothing store [02/04/08] Lane Bryant parent company offers reward [02/04/08] Video Police Hunt for Man Who Killed 5 "They have asked for our assistance, which we're providing," Ross Rice, an FBI spokesman for the agency's Chicago office, said Monday. He declined to detail the agency's involvement, including whether they are assisting the investigation, the manhunt or both.Several messages left for Tinley Park Police Sgt. T.J. Grady, were not immediately returned.Police Chief Mike O'Connell told reporters Sunday that the investigation has been "extremely sensitive" and that "we need to keep ... information confidential."The dead included the store's manager, a nurse, a high school social worker, a real estate broker and a paralegal.They have been identified as: Connie R. Woolfolk, 37, of Flossmoor; Sarah T. Szafranski, 22, of Oak Forest; Carrie H. Chiuso, 33, of Frankfort; Rhoda McFarland, 42, of Joliet; and Jennifer L. Bishop, 34, of South Bend, Ind.Several local media outlets, citing unnamed sources, reported that the surviving woman was treated and released from St. James Hospital in Olympia Fields.Hospital spokeswoman Sherry Sissac confirmed the facility received one female shooting victim Saturday but declined to give further information.Relatives continued to mourn the victims.When 62-year-old Melvin Woolfolk heard that his daughter had been fatally shot with four others in an attempted robbery at the plus-size clothing store, he says his knees buckled."She went shopping and stopped in to pick something up and was going back to do some work," he said of Connie Woolfolk. "She was just a loving person who would help anybody. Nobody deserved what happened."Connie Woolfolk worked for the village of Park Forest and as a real estate broker. Her father said she was devoted to her two sons, one of whom had severe leg deformities from birth and had undergone numerous operations."Our emotions are raw. And we are still in shock," Szafranski's family said in a statement. "Sarah was loved by all who knew her and we are counting on that love to sustain us while we mourn."Szafranski was a 2007 graduate of Northern Illinois University who was working as a paralegal, according to a Web site that appeared to be her Facebook page.Chiuso, a 1993 graduate of Homewood-Flossmoor High School, was a social worker at the school."She had a real touch with students. The entire H-F family is deeply saddened," said school spokesman Dave Thieman in a statement.Bishop was a nurse in the intensive care unit at Memorial Hospital of South Bend, according to spokeswoman Ruth Linster.Nancy Pemberton, a hospital nursing supervisor, described as "an exceptional human being and a wonderful nurse and a wonderful mother."For two years, McFarland managed the Lane Bryant store. Her best friend, Sandra McGhee of Joliet, said she was a hopeful, prayerful woman who doted on her employees."Because I know her so well, I think to the end Rhoda might have even tried to talk to this man, tried to help him," McGhee said. "Even with her last breath, I believe she would have been forgiving him and trying to help him."