TINLEY PARK, Ill. – Family and friends paid their respects on Thursday to the first of five female victims killed last weekend at an apparent clothing store robbery.
A manhunt continues for the gunman on the run after the Saturday attack at a Lane Bryant store in Tinley Park, Ill.
Carrie Chiuso, a 33-year-old high school counselor, was remembered by more than 500 mourners at the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Homewood, Ill.
Meanwhile, the company that owns the store offered to pay for the victims' funerals but it is unknown if the families accepted that offer.
Gayle Coolick, a spokeswoman for Lane Bryant, said the company also set up a memorial fund to provide funds to the families of the victims.
The only survivor, who pretended to be dead after a bullet grazed her neck, released a statement on Wednesday.
The survivor, whose identity is not being released and is under protective custody, called the event "an unspeakable tragedy" in a statement directed towards the victims' families.
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The suspect is described as a black male with hair styled in braids with four light-green dangling beads. Police are expected to release a sketch of the suspect on Wednesday.
Authorities are seeking information from barbers and hair stylists with the detailed description of the suspect's hair.
Officers found the victims at the back of the store after getting a 911 call around 10:45 a.m., according to police.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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