An attempt by police to break up a large gathering in a Cook County Forest Preserve near Schiller Park on Sunday afternoon resulted in the arrests of a dozen people and injuries to police officers and participants.
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Police said that as the gathering got out of control, they shut down streets clogged with participants and called in extra units.
According to Steve Mayberry, a spokesman for the Forest Preserve District, about 2,000 people were expected at the gathering, called Freak Nic by participants, in Schiller Woods. Instead, 8,000 to 12,000 people showed up, prompting police to shut down the event, he said.
At that point, according to authorities, the gathering got out of control.
“The impression I got was it was just too many people in the same place at the same time,” said Cook County Sheriff’s Police spokesman Bill Cunningham.
Among the injured were two Chicago police officers who were taken to Resurrection Medical Center for minor injuries. According to Forest Preserve Supt. Joseph Nevius, another man was shot in the arm in the forest preserve. He was taken to Gottlieb Hospital in Melrose Park, where he was listed in good condition.
Though the incident began in the forest preserve, police and witnesses reported the problem spread.
“We were dodging bottles,” said Melrose Park Police Officer Sal Paletta, who was at the Melrose Place Shopping Center at 1st and North Avenues in Melrose Park.
According to Forest Preserve Police Chief Steve Castens, a woman was sexually assaulted at the shopping center.
In addition to forest preserve police, officers from Chicago, Schiller Park, River Grove, and Melrose Park were called to the scene to restore order.