In the predawn hours of August 22, 2026, 26-year-old Malik Pickett was struck by multiple gunshot wounds near Jefferson Avenue and MacArthur Highway in Peoria. A ShotSpotter alert registered 20 rounds fired; officers found Pickett wounded and he was taken to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 3:14 a.m. Another man suffered a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to the leg and went to the hospital on his own.

A vehicle was seen fleeing the shooting scene. During a police pursuit that followed, that car struck and killed 52-year-old Gary Traylor near Howett and Western Avenue, then collided with another car and a utility pole. The two male occupants of the fleeing vehicle were extricated and taken to a hospital, one in serious condition and the other in critical condition; a firearm was recovered from the vehicle.

The Peoria Police Department is handling the shooting investigation while the Illinois State Police are investigating the fatal crash. If anyone has information about the shooting, the fleeing vehicle, or the occupants, please share what is known with investigators.