Gunman shoots employee at Pizza Ranch in Sterling

STERLING, Ill. (WTVO) — Police have detained a 17-year-old suspect who shot an employee at a Pizza Ranch restaurant in Sterling on Wednesday.

According to the Sterling Police Department, officers were called to the scene, at 3900 East Lincolnway, around 7:49 p.m.

Numerous customers and employees fled the business or barricaded themselves within the restaurant until officers arrived. Witnesses told police the shooter ran away on foot after the shooting.

The 17-year-old employee, a male from Rock Falls, was shot in the neck. He was taken to a local hospital for treatment and was later released.

Sterling Police, along with officers from the Whiteside County Sheriff, Rock Falls Police, Dixon Police, and the Illinois State Police, began a search for the suspect and located him at a home in Rock Falls.

He was detained at 10:14 p.m. without incident, police said.

No charges have yet been announced.