Mass shooting in US state of South Carolina leaves 14 injured; suspect arrested

Mass shooting in US state of South Carolina leaves 14 injured; suspect arrested

Police were now seeking two other suspects who had been seen carrying guns inside the mall, and were examining video footage to determine how many firearms had been discharged

FPJ Web DeskUpdated: Sunday, April 17, 2022, 10:58 AM IST
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Authorities stage outside Columbiana Centre mall in Columbia, S.C., following a shooting, on Saturday, April 16, 2022 | AP

A 22-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a shooting at a South Carolina shopping mall in which 14 people were either shot or injured during a stampede to escape, police said on Saturday night.

The man was one of three people to be detained immediately after the incident, which happened just outside South Carolina’s capital of Colombia, and he will be charged with unlawfully carrying a pistol.

Columbia police chief William Holbrook said other charges against the man could follow, but the other two people had been released.

Police were now seeking two other suspects who had been seen carrying guns inside the mall, and were examining video footage to determine how many firearms had been discharged.

The wounded ranged in age from 15 to 73, with nine suffering gunshot wounds and the remainder being injured while trying to escape the violence.

Holbrook said that on Saturday night most of the victims had been treated and released from hospital, with only the 73-year-old woman still receiving care.

“We don’t believe this was random,” Holbrook said. “We believe they knew each other and something led to the gunfire.”

Investigators believe that at least three suspects displayed firearms inside the mall but are working to determine how many suspects fired weapons, police said. At least one firearm was seized by authorities.

Heavy police presence continued in the area hours after the shooting, though officers began letting more traffic through the streets surrounding the shopping centers and strip malls that are usually packed on weekends. Officers were also stationed outside a nearby hotel designated as a reunification area for people at the scene of the shooting and their families.

Workers from a couple of stores remained clustered in the mostly empty parking lot Saturday evening, waiting for police to let them back inside to retrieve their car keys and personal belongings so they could leave. They said they did not hear or see anything during the shooting but followed the mall’s alert system and were evacuated by police shortly after. They declined to give their names, citing company policies.

The shooting is the latest in a rash of shootings at or near malls across the US.

A 15-year-old boy was shot in the head Wednesday outside Brooklyn’s Atlantic Terminal Mall. His injuries were not believed to be life-threatening. Officials said he was with a group of boys when they got into a dispute with a second group.

On Tuesday, a Southern California shoe store owner mistakenly shot a 9-year-old girl while firing at two shoplifters at the Mall of Victor Valley, police said.

And earlier this month, police said six people were killed and 12 others wounded in Sacramento, California, during a gunfight between rival gangs as bars closed in a busy area near the Downtown Commons shopping mall and the state Capitol.

(with inputs from AP)

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