2 men arrested after toddler shot near Park Forest

PARK FOREST — Park Forest police have arrested two men after a 2-year-old boy was critically injured in a shooting last Friday.

Police said a family member of the toddler brought him to a local hospital with a gunshot wound to his abdomen around 11:15 a.m. on Nov. 25. The child was immediately airlifted to Comer Children’s Hospital to undergo surgery.

According to police, Devin K. Galloway, 32, Matteson identified himself as the boy’s father and said the shooting occurred in the 300 block of Forest Blvd. Responding officers encountered Shaun D. Brown, 34, of Park Forest, at the scene.

Despite giving officers a similar account of events, police said Brown interfered with their investigation and was taken into custody.

Further investigation revealed that Galloway was not the toddler’s father but a caretaker at the time of the shooting. Also discovered was the location of the shooting, with police saying the incident occurred in the 100 block of Hemlock St. in Park Forest.

Authorities stated that the critically injured child was taken to the Forest Boulevard address before being taken to the hospital, with both men said to have gone to great lengths to cover up the location of the shooting.

Police eventually arrested Galloway and Brown for their roles in the shooting. Authorities recovered a stolen, loaded Glock handgun from a vehicle driven by Galloway.

Brown was charged with felony obstructing justice and two misdemeanor counts of resisting or obstructing a peace officer. Galloway was charged with unlawful use of a weapon by a felon.