Mall of America shooting: Minnesota police arrest 5 teens after gun rampage that left 19-yr-old dead
BLOOMINGTON, MINNESOTA: Five people were arrested following a shooting at the Mall of America on Friday evening, December 23. The update comes after a 19-year-old African-American man was killed in the incident after a man walked near the mall's Nike store and fired at least three shots.
After this shooting, the mall was closed. On Twitter, the mall confirmed the closure and asked customers to go to "the closest secure location" An update followed an hour later, saying, "Mall of America is now lifting lockdown. Guests should now exit the property. Mall of America remains closed for the evening." The Bloomington Police Department also tweeted shortly after 8.15 pm that police and emergency personnel were on the scene of a shooting at the mall.
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Mall of America is now lifting lockdown. Guests should now exit the property. Mall of America remains closed for the evening. Please stay tuned for an additional statement.
— Mall of America (@mallofamerica) December 24, 2022
Bloomington Police and EMS are on scene of a reported shooting at the Mall Of America. MOA is on lockdown. Please stay out of the area. Information will be released via twitter as it becomes available.
— Bloomington Police (@BPD_MN) December 24, 2022
Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges announced the arrests in connection with the shooting in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington on Saturday, December 24. The arrested suspects, who were picked after a SWAT team conducted a raid at 8.40 am at a house in the city, are two men, 18, and three 17-year-old male juveniles, and all would face murder charges, reports Minneapolis Star Tribune. Hodges also added by saying that one of the 18-year-olds is believed to be the shooter, though another suspect may also have fired a weapon. He said, "I’m fairly confident we do have the person responsible for murdering the victim in custody." Meanwhile, a sixth suspect is still being sought.
Minnesota Gov Tim Walz tweeted on December 24 that the mall shooting was “absolutely unacceptable. We are in touch with local officials to provide the support and resources they need.”
The violence at MOA last night is absolutely unacceptable. We are in touch with local officials to provide the support and resources they need.
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) December 24, 2022