5 killed in Illinois shooting; suspect dies after police chase

Five members of a family were killed in a home in Manchester, Ill., and the suspected gunman died after a police chase, officials said Wednesday.

The family, including a grandmother, a young couple and two small children, were found dead in the Scott County Housing Authority complex on East Street, officials said. A sixth relative, a 6-year-old child, was listed in critical condition in a Springfield, Ill., hospital.

Those slain were identified as: Joanne Sinclair, 65; her granddaughter Brittany Luark, 22, and boyfriend Roy Ralston; and Nolan Ralston, 5, and Bradley Ralston, 1, according to Brad Teeter, Sinclair’s son-in-law, who spoke with the Chicago Tribune.

The wounded child, Cassidy Ralston, was in serious condition, Teeter said.

“The guy broke into the house,” Teeter told the newspaper. “I couldn’t tell you about the guy, never met him, never seen him, never talked to him. Apparently broke into the home of my wife’s mother and shot everybody inside.”

Manchester is a town of about 350 in Scott County in west-central Illinois. The town is about 18 miles south of Jacksonville, Ill.

Manchester Mayor Ron Drake told WGEM-TV that he was notified of the multiple shootings about 5 a.m. He said these were the first killings in the town in the 43 years he has lived there.

The suspect engaged police in a brief chase about 8 a.m. that ended with shots being fired. He was arrested and later died. The suspect was not identified.

During the chase, several schools in the area were shut down as a security measure.

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