URGENT search for two AMBER Alert children who vanished after their mother was shot dead at a gas station

The suspect is considered armed and dangerous

Illinois authorities issued an AMBER Alert for two toddler children who disappeared on Wednesday afternoon, after their mother was fatally shot at a Markham gas station earlier that morning.

The Chicago Tribune reports that two children, Jordyn Washington, 2, and Lynn Roby, 3, were reportedly abducted by their father, Lynn Washington, 40, at around 2 p.m. from Markham, a city around 25 miles north of Chicago. Court records indicate that a judge put a protection order in place against Washington, banning him from any contact with the children.

According to police, Washington and the children’s mother, identified as Lakisha Roby, got into an argument on Wednesday morning at around 1:35 a.m., at the BP gas station at 167th Street and Pulaski Road in Markam. Roby was shot and killed at the gas station. Authorities indicated that Washington is wanted for questioning in connection with her death.

Lynn Washington [Police Handout]
Later that evening, Washington reportedly picked the children up from a family friend’s home, then left in a 2004 or 2005 silver Chevrolet sedan.

“Once we realized kids were involved, it was a race against time,” Markham police Chief Mack Sanders said. “We just want to know where the kids are.”

Sanders also said that Washington “is considered armed and dangerous, based on his criminal history and our investigation.”

Washington is described as a black male standing  5 feet 9 inches tall, weighing around 180 pounds. He’s said to have tattoos on his chest, arms, and neck. He has numerous previous arrests, for charges that include domestic battery and theft.

Anyone with any information is urged to call 911 immediately.

[Feature Photo: Lynn Roby, Jordyn Washington/Police Handout]