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Ill. Family of 4 Found Fatally Shot Were Likely Killed in Targeted Attack, Say Police: ‘Not a Random Incident’

A family of four who were shot dead inside a home in Romeoville, Ill. over the weekend were likely killed in a targeted attack, according to police.

Along with the identities of the two adult victims — Alberto Rolon, 38, and Zoraida Bartolomei, 32, whose names were released on Monday — in a Tuesday press conference, Romeoville Police Department Deputy Chief Chris Burne identified the two children killed as two boys aged 7 and 9.

“This incident is the police department’s top priority,” Burne said during the press conference. “All officers and professional staff have been working tirelessly on this case. Our detectives and crime-scene investigators have spent the last 36-hours collecting a tremendous amount of physical evidence.”

“We were able to determine that this was not a random incident and there was no cause for a shelter-in-place order,” he added.

Burne also said that Will County Major Crimes Task Force “has been brought in to assist our investigators with gathering evidence and reviewing video.”

“Our entire community is grieving with the family over this tragic incident,” Romeoville Mayor John Noak said at the press conference. “It is always heartbreaking whenever there is a loss of life, but when there are children involved it’s much more painful.”

Authorities have not discussed or released information on any suspects. As PEOPLE previously reported, the family’s three dogs were also killed in the attack.

Slain family had recently moved into Romeoville home before shooting
The home in Romeoville, Ill. where a family of four were found dead last weekend.CBS CHICAGO/YOUTUBE

On Monday, Burne told PEOPLE that the family had moved into the neighborhood recently and lived in Romeoville, a village situated about 26 miles southwest of Chicago, in a single-family home.

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“They had moved into the community earlier this year,” he said.

On Sunday, after one of the family members missed work at 6 a.m. and didn’t respond to phone calls, police were called to the home for a wellness check at around 8:45 p.m., according to law enforcement officials.

When the officers entered the home, they discovered the bodies of the family and three dogs — all deceased from gunshot wounds. Police said they believe that the shootings occurred between the hours of 9 p.m. Saturday and 5 a.m. Sunday.

During a Monday news conference, Burne confirmed that the incident was “not a murder-suicide.” He added, “Right now, we are investigating it as a murder.”

Lynn Phillips, a neighbor who lives one house away from the late family, spoke to PEOPLE on Monday.

“They go to work, they go home, they take their kids to school,” Phillips told PEOPLE. “They worked in the yard. We’d wave to each other.”

“I’m devastated,” she said. “I’ve cried on and off since last night.”

GoFundMe was created by a relative of Bartolomei this week to assist with funeral expenses, and “to create awareness of this ongoing case,” a statement on the page reads.

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