The gunman who attacked an Independence Day parade in the Illinois city of Highland Park, killing at least seven people, legally purchased two high-powered rifles and three other weapons, according to police. This is even though authorities were called to his home twice in 2019 due to threats of suicide and violence.

Tuesday, prosecutors accused the 21-year-old of seven counts of murder.

Robert E. Crimo III, the suspected shooter who was arrested late on Monday, used a high-powered rifle "similar to an AR-15" to fire more than 70 rounds into a crowd in Highland Park, a 30,000-person affluent community on the Lake Michigan shore, a spokesperson for the Lake County Major Crime Task Force stated at a news conference on Tuesday.

The police were called to the suspect's residence in September 2019 after a family member said he threatened to "kill everyone" in the home.

Christopher Covelli, a spokeswoman for the task force, stated that police confiscated sixteen knives, a dagger, and a sword. Still, there was no indication he had any firearms at the time.

Covelli stated that the suspect legally purchased the high-powered gun in Illinois within the past year. Police said he bought five guns and seized them at his father's residence.

Covelli stated that police reacted to an alleged suicide attempt by the suspect in 2019.

According to authorities, Crimo was charged with seven counts of first-degree murder.

Eric Rinehart, state's attorney for Lake County, stated that the suspect would eventually face "dozens of more charges." He said Crimo would face a mandatory life sentence without parole if convicted.

Mass shootings

The day following the shooting, officials reported a seventh fatality.

More than thirty others were injured in the attack, which Covelli claimed the suspect had been planning for weeks.

Covelli stated that investigators who questioned the suspect and investigated his social media posts could not find a reason for the crime or evidence that he targeted victims based on their ethnicity, religion, or other protected status.

According to a database maintained by The Associated Press, USA Today, and Northeastern University, there have been 15 mass shootings in the United States since the beginning of the year, including the incident in Highland Park.

Over the Fourth of July weekend, dozens of smaller-scale shootings in nearby Chicago left eight people dead and sixty more wounded.

In 2013, Highland Park officials enacted a ban on assault weapons and magazines holding more than ten rounds of ammo. A local physician and the Illinois State Rifle Association swiftly contested the position of the liberal suburb.

The legal battle came to an end at the doorstep of the United States Supreme Court in 2015 when justices declined to hear the case and allowed the suburb's limits to remain in place.

The suspect investigated mass murders and beheadings

Crimo, also known as Bobby, was an aspiring rapper named Awake the Rapper who posted scores of threatening and violent videos and songs on social media.

In a video that YouTube has since removed, Crimo raps about troops "walking in darkness" as a drawing of a man holding a rifle, a body on the ground, and another figure with their hands raised emerges in the background.

A law enforcement official stated that federal authorities were analyzing Crimo's online profiles. A preliminary assessment of his computer history revealed that he had investigated mass killings and downloaded various photographs showing horrific actions, including a beheading.