The Mall of America, a shopping center located in Bloomington, Minnesota, just before 8 o’clock on Friday night, saw a gunshot that resulted in the death of one individual, according to the police.
During a shooting inside the mall’s Nordstrom, one victim was directly shot and died at the spot, while the clothing of another victim was grazed by a bullet, according to a report from Fox Minneapolis. The deceased victim was described as a 19-year-old African American male.
The Bloomington Police Department stated that footage from security cameras suggested that the shooting began as a fight between two groups of young males and escalated from there.
“Whoever is responsible for this, we will find them. And anyone who assists them will find themselves behind bars as well. “During a press conference held at the mall two hours after the incident, Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges made the following statement. “This is just foolish, stupid, stupid.” Hodges continued, “Whether someone is going to fully disregard mankind, I don’t know if we can stop them.”
Additionally, the head of police requested that the suspect or suspects responsible for the shooting turn themselves in at the police station. According to Karen Scullin of FOX 9, the person whose garment was grazed by a bullet, merely described as a female, did not sustain any injuries due to the incident.
Mall Of America shooting scene has been secured. BPD is working with MOA Security and Hennepin County Crime Lab to process the area. Lockdown of the MOA was recently lifted. Please continue to stay out of the area until further notice. Follow twitter for additional information.
— Bloomington Police (@BPD_MN) December 24, 2022
Following the initial reports of a shooting, the shopping center was placed under lockdown, and a significant police presence responded to the scene. According to the officials, this practice has been eliminated since it was implemented. On Saturday, the mall will be open to the public. However, the Nordstrom shop will stay closed.
“The lockdown at Mall of America has now been lifted. The time has come for guests to leave the premises. Mall of America will not be opening its doors until tomorrow ,”read a post from the official account of shopping center’s Twitter account.
Photos and videos taken at the incident showed that Bloomington law enforcement and emergency medical services officials remained at the scene for several hours and were parked mainly outside Nordstrom.
The local population is strongly discouraged from entering the area by the police. In the midst of the hectic holiday shopping season, the shooting took place two days before Christmas.
According to Scullin’s assessment, there were sixteen cops or security professionals working in the mall at the time of the incident. One of those officers was stationed in a store immediately adjacent to the location where the shooting occurred.
The incident that took place on Friday comes just a few months after another shooting that took place at the Mall of America in August of 2022. A second incident took place at the same mall in December 2021, and the police responded to it. Both prior shootings were carried out by suspects who were young adults ranging in age from 18 to 23.
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