Man charged with murder in fatal shooting of 2 workers at Chicago Navy Pier

CHICAGO – A Chicago man has been charged with murder in the fatal shooting of two workers at the city’s popular Navy Pier tourist attraction, authorities said Saturday.

Raylon East, 36, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of criminal possession/use of a weapon in Tuesday’s shootings, Chicago police said.

East was scheduled to have a detention hearing on Saturday. The Chicago Police Department communications office said it did not have information on the defendant’s attorneys. Cook County criminal court records are not online. There was no immediate response to an email sent Saturday to the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office asking if the name of East’s attorney would be released.

East was arrested Thursday after police released surveillance footage of the suspect entering an office space near the Navy Pier loading dock just before Tuesday’s shootings, media outlets reported. Police said East was fired Oct. 14 from his job at the pier, which includes shops, restaurants, entertainment venues and the iconic Ferris wheel on the shores of Lake Michigan.

Police said the gunman shot Lamont Johnson, 51, and Peter Jennings, 47, before running away. It was stated that the victims died in the hospital where they were taken.

Police said East fled the scene and used public transportation to escape.