Florida shooting: In a shooting incident reported inside a mall at Ocala in Florida on Saturday afternoon, a man was killed and a woman was injured inside mall.
Reporting an “active shooter scenario,” police received 911 calls about multiple shots fired inside the Paddock Mall and heavy team of police rushed to the shooting scene to respond to the situation.
As per the statement by police chief, “Officers immediately made entry into the mall and eventually discovered this was not an active shooter situation.”
The police, instead, characterised the shooting incident as a targeted act of violence. Following the incident, the judge halted California law that would have banned carrying concealed firearms in many public places.
The police chief confirmed further that a man was found dead inside the mall from gunshot wounds. He added that a woman suffered a gunshot wound to her leg. She was shifted to a hospital and is expected to survive.
Police are still searching for the suspect, who was reportedly described as a Black male wearing a black hoodie, black pants and a black mask over his face.
While the parking lot of the mall has been reopened for residents to retrieve their vehicles, the mall remains closed.
“We are deeply saddened by this tragedy. Our thoughts are with all those involved. The safety of our guests, retailers and employees is our top priority. We are working closely with the Ocala Police Department as they investigate this incident,” the statement read.
Notably, deaths caused by Gun violence are approaching 42,000 for the year. Large and small communities across the country are searching for ways to curb the violence, as state-level efforts to regulate firearms in California, New York, Maryland and elsewhere have failed in court.
The shooting took place at a shopping mall on one of the busiest shopping days of the year.
