10s of thousands reach out to orphaned 2-year old with their hearts and millions in cash

HIGHLAND PARK, IL (Heart of Illinois ABC) - Millions of dollars have been raised on a GoFundMe page for the two-year old boy whose parents were killed by a gunman during Monday’s Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, Illinois.

Meantime, authorities said the 22-year old suspect confessed to the shooting that left seven people dead two-dozen others injured.

Also, the director of the Illinois State Police spoke with reporters Wednesday about the state’s “red flag” laws that can remove guns from people with potentially violent behavior, but did not prevent Robert Crimo III from buying guns.

Irina and Kevin McCarthy were among those murdered at the parade Monday morning, leaving their two-year old son Aiden McCarthy wandering along the parade route.

Late Wednesday night, a GoFundMe page had raised just over $2.8 million from almost 52,000 donors.

“Aiden will be cared for by his loving family and he will have a long road ahead to heal, find stability, and ultimately navigate life as an orphan. He is surrounded by a community of friends and extended family that will embrace him with love, and any means available to ensure he has everything he needs as he grows,” said fundraising organizer Irina Colon.

During the investigation, authorities have revealed Highland Park Police responded to a threat report involving Crimo in September 2019, three months before he applied for a Firearm Owner’s Identification Card (FOID).

Crimo and his mother disputed the threat report that came from his father, according to police. The investigating officer could not get anyone else to agree at the time that Crimo was a “clear and present danger.”

“Friends, family, others that see things, know things that are of concern, need to take the appropriate steps because we are, frankly, dependent upon that to be able to act,” said State Police Director Brendan Kelly.

Director Kelly emphasized nothing had changed from the time of the “clear and present danger” report in which Crimo was not a threat to the time he applied for his FOID card in December of that year. His father signed on as the applicant’s sponsor for the FOID card.

Authorities said on Wednesday that Crimo drove to Madison, Wisconsin after the shooting and thought about attacking a Fourth of July event there.

Police said Crimo confessed to the mass killing in a voluntary statement. He appeared in court for the first time on Wednesday, charged with seven counts of first-degree murder. A judge ordered Crimo jailed without bond.

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