Highland Park Shooting Suspect Keeps Jail Video Calls After Claiming FBI Staged Attack

The man charged in the Highland Park Fourth of July massacre has kept his ability to make video calls from Lake County Jail, even after a clip of him claiming the FBI staged the attack surfaced on social media. The episode has prompted questions about the communications access given to a defendant awaiting trial on charges of killing seven people and wounding dozens of others.

The footage comes from a Sept. 21 video call made by Robert E. Crimo III. The woman who recorded the call was found to have violated jail rules and has been barred from making further video calls with inmates. Crimo, however, has not been disciplined and can still place calls from a tablet in his cell, according to the Lake County sheriff's office.

Earlier this year, Crimo lost his tablet privileges for a time after he prank called a journalist. The sheriff's office said that this time the matter is for a judge to decide, since Crimo himself was not the person who broke the jail's rules.

In the 38-second clip, Crimo, who appears to be wearing a blue jail uniform, describes the shooting as a "false flag" operation orchestrated by the FBI. He also names two people he identifies as FBI agents.

Lake County Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said the naming of individuals was troubling. "This inmate providing the names of various people, whether involved in his criminal investigation or not, is certainly concerning," he said.

The sheriff's office has passed details of the call to the Lake County state's attorney's office. Covelli said the office shares all the information it has on any inmate with prosecutors, who may use it in aggravation in the current case or to decide whether to pursue additional charges. A spokesman for the state's attorney's office said it knew of the video but declined to comment further. The FBI's Chicago office and Crimo's lawyer also declined to comment.

Crimo is accused of firing an assault rifle from a rooftop during the July 4, 2022, parade. Covelli nonetheless said he receives the same video call privileges as other detainees. "Pre-trial detainees are afforded rights under the constitution and state law," he said in an email. He described the alleged acts as "incredibly heinous, horrific and inexcusable" but noted that Crimo has not been convicted.

Covelli said inmates at Lake County Jail use tablets to send notices to nurses, social workers and correctional staff, and to make phone and video calls. Tablets are widely used in prisons and jails, including in Cook County. Detainees cannot search the internet but can send texts and make video calls, and the devices can also display educational content. A Cook County sheriff's spokesperson said jail staff there monitor communications on the tablets.