Three people were wounded in a shooting Saturday evening inside a shopping mall in northern Delaware which detectives believe stemmed from some kind of dispute, authorities said.
The shooting was reported at 6:43 p.m. local time in the food court of the Christiana Mall, Delaware State Police spokesperson Jason Hatchell told reporters in a briefing late Saturday night.
Three people were taken to local hospitals with gunshot wounds, Hatchell said, and another five were hospitalized with injuries “not related to gunfire.”
Shopper Elle Saulsbury described the chaotic scene to CBS Philadelphia.
“We just saw everybody running, and eventually the fire alarm got pulled, and we weren’t sure what was going on,” Saulsbury said. “So we just decide to run with the crowd.”
Following the shooting, the mall was evacuated and remained closed for the night. State police said that a reunification center was set up near the mall’s north entrance.
It’s unclear how many suspects were involved, Hatchell said, disclosing that “investigators believe” the shooting was the “result of an altercation between several suspects, and at least one of the victims.” No arrests were confirmed.
Hatchell added that detectives do not believe the shooting was random in nature.
“This wasn’t just a random shooting,” Hatchell said. “They didn’t come to the mall and pick a random victim and open fire.”
Christiana is located about 40 miles southwest of Philadelphia.
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