By Lateef Mungin
January 23, 2014
Photo courtesy abclocal.go.com
(CNN) – An 11-year-old Illinois girl was stabbed 40 times by her 14-year-old sister, police say, and the reason why has many in the small Chicago-area community of Mundelein reeling in disbelief.
Police found the 11-year-old girl unconscious and in need of medical attention in an upstairs bedroom of the dwelling Tuesday morning. She later died.
Because the sister, who called police, initially told officers an intruder was to blame for the attack, authorities briefly placed three schools on lockdown.
The truth, when it emerged, was even more shocking.
The 14-year-old, authorities say, repeatedly and fatally stabbed the victim — her half sister — with a kitchen knife because the teen thought she was ungrateful.
“This incident is a heartbreaking tragedy that defies understanding,” said Mundelein Mayor Steve Lentz. “I am asking the Chicagoland area, please pray for us. Pray, first of all, for the family that has been devastated by this.”
A group called “Mundelein Moms” is raising money for the girl’s funeral and said it raised $6,381 in just one day. There also is an effort to have residents leave their lights on Friday night in remembrance.
Intruder in the house
Police received a 911 call about the incident at 8:30 a.m Tuesday. The call came from the 14-year-old girl, said Mundelein Police Chief Eric Guenther.
The teen told emergency dispatchers that an intruder had barged into the home, attacked her sister and then fled, CNN affiliate WLS reported.
Schools in area were immediately placed on lockdown, Guenther said.
“The area-wide school lockdown lasted only 15 minutes,” he said.
But the teen’s story unraveled quickly.