5 arrested in fatal shooting of 19-year-old man in Mall of America, police say
Five people were arrested Saturday in connection with the fatal shooting of a 19-year-old man Friday night inside a Nordstrom store at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, authorities said. The shooting prompted a more than one-hour lockdown of the mall.
Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges reported that authorities executed a search warrant Saturday morning at an address in the nearby city of St. Louis Park, where they arrested five males. Three of the suspects were 17-year-old juveniles, and two were 18-year-old adults, Hodges said. Their names were not released.
He said that police were "fairly confident" that they "have the person who was responsible for murdering the victim in custody."
Detectives, however, are still trying to locate the murder weapon, Hodges disclosed, adding that they were working to determine if there was a second shooter involved in the incident as well.
Hodges told reporters in an earlier briefing that an officer heard the gunshots coming from the first floor of the Nordstrom at about 7:50 p.m. local time Friday. The officer responded to find the victim with multiple gunshot wounds.
The victim died at the scene despite lifesaving efforts, Hodges said. His name was not immediately provided.
According to Hodges, surveillance video showed that the shooting appeared to have been precipitated by "some kind of altercation between two groups" of males. One of them then pulled out a gun and opened fire.
The jacket of a woman, who Hodges described as "an innocent bystander," was also grazed by a bullet, but she was unhurt.
About five to seven people ran out of the store following the shooting, Hodges said.
The mall was placed on lockdown after the shots were fired, during which customers and employees were asked to "remain in the closest secure location." The lockdown was lifted a little after 9 p.m. local time.
Both Bloomington and St. Louis Park are part of the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area.
This marks the second time in past five months the Mall of America has been placed on lockdown due to a shooting. On Aug. 4, shots were fired near the cash registers of a Nike store, but no injuries occurred.
That shooting caused chaos, sending panicked customers and employees running for safety. Hodges said at the time that there had also been an altercation between two groups. One of the groups left, but then returned, and one person fired three shots into the store, Hodges said.
Two men suspected of being involved in the shooting were arrested days later following a multiagency manhunt. Three others were also arrested, accused of helping the two men escape.
The mall began testing the use of a "weapons detection system" at its north entrance in October, according to CBS Minnesota.
