Highland Park ‘shooter’ Awake the Rapper’s chilling lyrics revealed in songs Dead Again & Brainwashed before attack
A SUSPECTED gunman released a series of chilling songs - months before being arrested in connection with a July 4 parade shooting that left six dead.
Robert "Bobby" E Crimo III, 22, was identified as a person of interest following the chaos in Highland Park, Illinois on Monday.
Crimo reportedly had a verified profile on Spotify and was known as Awake the Rapper.
It appears that his account has since been removed.
Crimo reportedly released an EP earlier this year named "Brainwashed" and some of the songs were titled “Dead Again” and “I am the Storm”.
He released three albums including Messages in 2017, Observer in 2018, and the self-titled Awake the Rapper in 2021.
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His YouTube account looks as if it has been removed but it appears some of his clips have been re-uploaded.
Crimo’s page reveals that he started uploading music to the internet when he was 11.
Grandfather Nicolas Toledo, 73, has been identified as being among the victims.
His grandson David told : “My grandpa was a funny man. He'd always joke around and be playful with his grandkids. He arrived [in] the U.S. in the '80s and worked around the Highland Park area for many years.
“He spent his last days swimming and fishing and being among family.”
Synagogue worker Jacki Sundheim was also killed.
Gunshots rang out just 10 minutes after the parade started and beach chairs, baby strollers, and backpacks were found strewn across the grounds as revelers fled in terror.
Construction worker Alexander Sandoval, 39, said he put his son and his little brother in a dumpster to escape the chaos.
He said: “When it started happening, I thought it was the Navy saluting the flag. Then I grabbed my kid and we ran and tried to break a store window to get away from it.”
He tried to punch down the door of a closed business as he tried to escape before putting two kids in a dumpster.
A little boy was found alone and covered in blood during the parade, however, he has since been reunited with his grandparents.
Several witnesses told the that they heard about 20-25 shots fired.
Miles Zaremski told the outlet: “I heard 20 to 25 shots, which were in rapid succession. So it couldn’t have been just a handgun or a shotgun."
Adrienne Drell said: “It was a quiet, peaceful, lovely morning, people were enjoying the parade.
“Within seconds, to have that peacefulness suddenly ripped apart, it’s scary. You can’t go anywhere, you can’t find peace. I think we are falling apart.”
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Lori Lightfoot, the mayor of Chicago, said the tragedy was “devastating”.