DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) – The Decatur Police Department is calling on community members, and state and federal resources to help combat a gang problem linked to several weekend shootings that left six people hurt.
"These people are making it unsafe for everybody,” Police Chief Jim Getz said.
The six different shootings started Saturday afternoon and bled into Sunday. All six of them occurred in just over 20 hours. Chief Getz said all the shootings are linked to two different gangs, the East Side and South Side Gangs.
To combat the recent rash of shootings, Getz said on Monday he is putting more officers on the street and asking Illinois State Police and the FBI for help.
“They need to be taken off the street,” Getz said. The citizens of Decatur, no matter where they live at, deserve to be safe in their community."
Getz told WAND News while the shooters usually have a target in mind, he does not believe they have any regard for human life.
"Some of it is that these gangs will shoot and not worry about who they hurt,” he said. “I mean a 10-year-old got hurt. They have no morals or care for anybody.”
Getz said the two gangs, known as East Side and South Side, get their names based on the geographical areas they associate with and each time officers respond to a shooting, it is taking away from helping others in the community.
"Someone may have just got their house broke into, or car broke into, unfortunately because of these shootings, unnecessary shootings, the citizens who want our help can't get it,” Getz said.
Getz said everyone involved in the past weekend’s shootings are the same people who were responsible for a rash of August shootings.
Decatur Police said they have suspects in mind and are working with the state’s attorney on how to move forward.
