CHICAGO (WLS) A woman who survived a shooting spree that left five others dead is speaking exclusively with ABC 7 about her terrifying encounter with a killer.
The rampage unfolded last month across Chicago and Evanston. The suspect shot seven people - seemingly at random - before he was killed by police.
Virginia McAllister, 81, says it s a miracle she s alive. She said she started her day on January 9 - the day of the deadly shooting spree - talking to her pastor and his wife.
She said they gave her a blessing, and then she was off to buy a PowerBall ticket at a food mart nearby. She said she was about to leave the store when a gunman fired and a bullet hit her neck.
That man, who was identified as Yiran Fan, 30, a University Chicago doctoral student, was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Chicago police.
Approximately 30 minutes later, Nightengale entered an apartment building in the 4900 block of South East End Avenue. He fired shots at a woman, who was serving as a security guard at the building. The victim, Aisha Nevell, 46, was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.
Another woman, 77, was inside the building retrieving her mail when she was hit by gunfire. She is in critical condition at the University of Chicago Medical Center, police said.
I don t [know] why this man did this to my child, I really don t understand it, Faulkner s mother, Georgia Evans, told NBC 5 Monday.
Footage from inside the convenience store showed Nightengale shoot Faulkner in the head. Faulkner s brother was outside the store at the time of the shooting, unaware of what was going on. If my other would have been inside, [he] probably would have shot both of them, Evans said.
Minutes later, Nightengale got into a car and was seen shooting at more people as he drove away. Police on Sunday continued to investigate why a gunman went on a shooting spree in Chicago and Evanston, killing three people and injuring several others. NBC 5 s Christian Farr reports.
The man police believe was responsible for the shootings, identified as 32-year-old Jason Nightengale, was shot and killed during an exchange of gunfire with police in Evanston, bringing to an end a string of murders that shocked Chicago.
In the third shooting, which took place at the convenience store, security camera captured Nightengale get into a car and shoot at more people as he drove away. Several minutes earlier, footage from inside the convenience store showed Nightengale shoot Faulkner in the head.
Nightengale then jumped the counter and took his time to steal money before walking out of the store.