Five individuals were detained Saturday in connection with the deadly shooting of a 19-year-old man at the Mall of America on one of the final days of the holiday shopping season, according to police. According to the Associated Press, Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges announced the arrests concerning the Friday night shooting in Bloomington, a Minneapolis suburb, and said all would face murder charges.
According to Hodges, the apprehended suspects were two men, 18 and three 17-year-old male adolescents, who were brought into custody in the morning at a residence in adjacent St. Louis Park by SWAT team police from three counties.
A juvenile adolescent is suspected of being one of the shooter.
The chief went on to say that one of the 18-year-olds is suspected of being the shooter, while another suspect may have also discharged a firearm. A sixth suspect was still wanted. “If you come here and kill folks at our mall in Bloomington, you get one of these for Christmas,” Hodges added, holding out an orange prison suit. He said that after departing the site of the incident, the suspects presumably stopped at a White Castle. “It appears they felt the need to find something to eat,” he explained.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz stated the shooting was “totally reprehensible. We contact local officials to provide the necessary assistance and resources.” Police have not yet recognized the dead 19-year-old, but Hodges has communicated with his relatives. Customers fled for safety after hearing gunshots at Nordstrom at the nation’s largest retail mall on Friday. A gunshot was claimed to have grazed a bystander’s jacket.
Two groups where involved
According to Police, there seemed to be an incident between two groups that evolved into a fistfight, and someone brought out a pistol and shot the victim many times. The whole thing lasted roughly 30 seconds. Around 7:50 p.m., a nearby Bloomington police officer—one of 16 stationed at the mall that day—heard gunfire. The police attempted to save the victim’s life but were unable.
The lockout lasted about an hour until the mall tweeted that customers were being directed outside. Social media videos showed people cowering in businesses while a mall announcer advised visitors to take shelter. The Mall of America prohibits firearms, although customers are not obliged to pass through metal detectors. In October, the mall was testing a “guns detecting system” at one of its entrances.
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