Cook County Deputy Killed in Turks and Caicos Shooting While on Vacation, Officials Say

Deputy Shamone Duncan was fatally shot along with a local resident in Turks and Caicos on Saturday, Jan. 18

By Escher Walcott is a Writer/Reporter at PEOPLE, covering stories in Entertainment, Style, Human Interest.She joins having written for several popular news publications, including Glamour, Refinery29, NYLON and Evening Standard, discussing the latest fashion trends, pop culture news, and pressing social matters. 

Published on January 21, 2025 08:36AM EST

An Illinois sheriff’s deputy has been shot and killed while on vacation in Turks and Caicos.

Cook County Deputy Shamone Duncan was fatally shot along with local resident Dario Stubbs near a restaurant on Grace Bay Road at around 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 18, the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force (RT&CIPF) said in a news release. 

“Preliminary investigations revealed that the Police Control Room received reports of gunfire being heard in the vicinity of a bar along Grace Bay Road,” Acting Commissioner Rodney Adams said, per the release. 

“Responding officers discovered three individuals injured during the shooting, one of whom succumbed to injuries at the scene while the other at the hospital.”

A third victim, a 29-year-old man, was also injured in the shooting and is undergoing medical treatment.

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“There is no evidence to suggest that Ms. Duncan, Mr. Stubbs or the wounded victim were the targets of this incident,” added police. 

No suspect has been found and no arrests have been made at this time. 

Duncan worked as deputy of the Cook County Department of Corrections for 20 years and was recently assigned to Cermak Health Services at the time of her death, per Fox 5 DC. 

According to her family, she was killed on her second night in Turks and Caicos after vacationing there for her sister’s birthday, ABC 7 Chicago reported. 

At the time of the shooting, Duncan was celebrating her sister’s birthday at a rooftop party at Aziza Restaurant & Lounge in Providenciales. An argument occurred downstairs before gunfire was heard outside and she was hit by a stray bullet, her family said, per multiple reports. 

“People started yelling, telling people to ‘get down, everybody got down,’ and my mom got up,” Payton told ABC 7 Chicago. “And then, she got hit … Bystanders came and they tried to help.”

Cook County Sheriff’s Office said their “hearts are broken for the family of Deputy Shamone Duncan,” per Fox 5 DC. 

“It is with unimaginable sorrow that we, the family of Sheriff Shamone A. Duncan, announce her tragic passing on Jan. 18, 2025,” the department said. “Shamone was a proud native of Chicago, born and raised in the city she loved and served tirelessly …Above all, Shamone was a devoted mother, grandmother, sister and friend.”

Duncan is reportedly survived by her son, two daughters and a granddaughter.