Shots Fired After Niles North Basketball Game

SKOKIE, IL — No one was injured when gunshots were fired near Niles North High School following a basketball game Friday night. The sound of gunfire interrupted the journey home for attendees of a game between Evanston Township High School and Niles North, prompting fans to ran back into the school and several nearby residents to call 911 shortly after 10 p.m., Skokie police said.

Witnesses said two groups of people had been walked from the southwest corner of campus toward LeClaire. The two groups of people then met up near the intersection of Payne Street and LeClaire Avenue, according to police.

After the gunfire, the crowd ran in different directions and "some may have left the scene in an unknown vehicle," police said.

Police said several shell casings were found in a driveway in the 9700 block of LeClaire Avenue. There was also bullet damage to a tree on LeClaire and the southern wall of the Niles North school building.

Skokie police described the investigation as active and ongoing. In a news release, the department said it was working to "coordinate information and review safety procedures at school events." Officers were already at the school for the game at the time of the incident.

Police said they were pursuing all investigative leads, and there was no suspect information immediately available.

In Friday's varsity boys basketball game, the Niles North Vikings defeated the ETHS Wildkits by a score of 64 to 52.

_{Top photo: Niles North High School, Skokie | Patch file, Tim Moran}