Milwaukee Shooting: 5 People Found Dead In House, Suspect Arrested

At least five people were found dead with gunshot wounds Monday inside a home in Milwaukee. Police said they arrested the suspect who contacted them claiming his family members were shot dead by someone.

Police were called to a home in the 2800 block of North 12th Street by the suspect claiming that his family was dead. On arrival, they found five victims, aged between 14 and 41 years, according to Milwaukee Police Chief Alfanso Morales.

Mayor Tom Barrett said a baby was found alive in the house, adding that investigators believed the shooter decided to spare the infant, according to The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

A weapon was recovered and investigators believe the suspect acted alone. Police said the public was not at threat.

Police were working to establish the relationship between the victims and the suspected shooter but refrained from identifying him or the victims. Morales called the shooting “a very tragic event,” insisting that the suspect and the victims were “all known to each other.”

However, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported, citing three law enforcement sources, that the shooter was Christopher P. Stokes, 43 and that the shooting was being investigated as a possible domestic incident.

The suspect, who reportedly has a lengthy criminal record in Milwaukee County, was convicted in 2002 of misdemeanor battery. He was sentenced to probation, ordered to attend domestic abuse counseling and prohibited from possessing firearms. He pleaded guilty in 2007 to felony battery, felony bail jumping and felony intimidation of a witness resulting in nearly five years of prison term. He was also barred from possessing firearms, according to online court records.

He pleaded guilty again to misdemeanor battery in 2012 with a domestic abuse modifier and served 18 months in prison. He was back again in jail for a month with work-release privileges after pleading guilty in 2017 to misdemeanor disorderly conduct. The state Department of Workforce Development filed a warrant against him seeking $13,304 in unemployment compensation that still remains unpaid.

Milwaukee Police spokeswoman Sheronda Grant said it was for the police department to “provide additional information regarding this incident in the upcoming days.”