Mother, 3 daughters killed, suspect arrested in suburban Chicago domestic shooting
TINLEY PARK, Ill. (CBS) – A mother and her three adult daughters were fatally shot in what police called an act of domestic violence inside a home in Tinley Park on Sunday.
The victims were identified as Majeda Kassem, 53; Halema Kassem, 25; Hanan Kassem, 24; and Zahia Kassem, 25. They were shot multiple times, and sources said they were all found in the same room of the house.
One man was arrested in connection with the shooting deaths, but it was unclear what his relationship was with the victims. Charges were pending as of Monday evening.
"We're working very closely with the State's Attorney, and we're making sure that we have all the information as specific as we can, so they can make an accurate charging decision," said Tinley Park police Chief Thomas Tilton.
Around 11:20 a.m. Sunday, police responded to a report of the shooting in the 7400 block of West 173rd Street.
Village Manager Pat Carr said a male made a 911 call saying someone was shot in the residence, and and police found the four gunshot victims dead on the scene.
Carr said the shooting was the result of a domestic incident. A man was arrested, and a weapon was recovered, he said.
"We know that this was isolated to this home," he said. "The [person was] taken into custody at the home. The scene is secure. There is only one suspect at this time, and we are confident that there is no threat to the general public in the area."
A neighbor whose daughter knew the family said a husband, wife, three daughters, and two sons lived in the home.
"She's in shock," said Charlotte Vaitkus. "She went to school with the oldest son, and she employed the twin sisters, and she always talked about how they were all very intelligent. And they had very high goals in life like they were a pharmacist and a doctor. She never knew that there were any problems at all at home."
Mourners gathered outside of the family's home on Monday. Some knew Halema, one of the twins, and said she was a standout student at Chicago State University's pharmacy school.
"I just can't believe something so terrible happened inside those walls," said Samah Qasmieh, a friend of Halema. "I keep imagining what she was doing like, moments before she was taken."
A motive was not immediately known.
"We are still investigating and interviewing the witnesses, and we are not done yet. And the investigators have not finished," Carr said.
Meanwhile, sources confirm another person was inside the house when the shots went off and killed the four women. For the sake of the investigation, this person's relationship to the four victims was not being revealed Monday night.
Sources said this person was not believed to be the gunman. But this person did hear the shots, and likely witnessed some portion of the quadruple murder, sources said.
Sources also said the person knows the man police had in custody – and police are working to find out what, if any, involvement the witness had in the crime.
The person was not injured, nor fired upon by the shooter – leaving Tinley Park police detectives to question what led the shooter to kill the women – and to leave the witness unharmed.
Police late Monday said there is no threat, and the shooting was domestic. Neighbors suspect the shooter is the husband and father of the victims – but late Monday, police would not say.
Police confirmed there had been no record of police interaction at the home prior to the incident.
