On Sept. 15, 2021, at approximately 1:38 p.m., Champaign Police responded to the area of Jefferson Middle School and Centennial High School for the report of shots fired. Both schools were placed on lockdown at police request. Upon arrival, officers located a shooting scene in a field north of Centennial High School. Thirteen (13) shell casings were recovered in two separate locations, indicating multiple shooters. No injuries were reported to police.
Following further police investigation, police are confident Centennial High School was not the intended target of the shooting incident.
On Sept. 25, in connection to the shooting, the Champaign County State’s Attorney’s Office obtained an arrest warrant for a 16-year-old male for the offense of Aggravated Discharge of a Firearm. On Sept. 30, at approximately 8:15 a.m., Champaign Police arrested the juvenile in the 1600 block of Sheffield Road. He was arrested without incident and transported to the Champaign County Juvenile Detention Center.
Although an arrest has been made, the incident remains under investigation. Champaign Police are still seeking the whereabouts of a second suspect in the shooting whose photo was released by police on Sept. 16.
The Champaign Police Department would like to thank the Champaign County State’s Attorney’s Office for its continued assistance during this investigation.
Champaign Police ask that anyone who has any information on this incident or the whereabouts of the additional suspect to please contact police at 217-351-4545. Arrangements can be made for information to be shared privately. Anyone wishing to remain anonymous may also submit tips to Crime Stoppers by phone at: 217-373-8477 (TIPS); online at 373tips.com; or the “P3 Tips” mobile app.
Citizens are reminded that information submitted to Crime Stoppers is completely anonymous. Calls are routed to a third-party national call center that receives your information, completes a tips information form, and then passes the information to the appropriate law enforcement agency. Caller ID tracking is not utilized by Crime Stoppers and conversations are not recorded.
All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.