One person was killed and three people were injured after a gunman opened fire at a Texas mall food court on Wednesday, police said. According to police, the shooting started around 5 pm at the Cielo Vista Mall in East El Paso. Two of the victims have been transported to the hospital while one person died on the scene.
Police said that one suspect was arrested, but that they are still looking for a second person who may have been involved in the fatal shooting. "It was chaotic. People did flee. They were scared," said Sgt. Robert Gomez of the El Paso Police Department.
Horrifying Scenes
A chilling video posted on social media appears to show one person lying dead inside the mall. Police can be seen trying to evacuate others, while one officer is seen calling for help as he stands near the body of the victim.
Other videos show multiple gunshots being fired inside the food court as people, including children, run toward the exit. "It was chaotic. People did flee. They were scared," said Gomez.
However, one of the suspects is already in custody but a second shooter is still active. A weapon was recovered at the scene, Gomez said, but he could not provide more information about that. "It's too early to speculate on a motive," Gomez said.
Gomez said that police believe the area to be secure and that they are currently searching the mall to confirm this. A reunification center has been established by the authorities at a high school nearby.
Police earlier said that a shooting was reported at the food court of the mall.
According to Olivia Troye, a former White House official, her aunt, a survivor of the 2019 Walmart shooting, was inside Cielo Vista mall when the shooting began.
No One's Safe
Wednesday's shooting at the Cielo Vista mall took place across a sizable parking lot, which is immediately adjacent to a Walmart store where 23 people were killed and almost two dozen more were injured in a shooting in 2019.
There was a heavy police presence outside the mall as detectives investigated the shooting.
"Thank you to all law enforcement and first responders who quickly went into action to protect their fellow Texans," Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted.
Several people have already died in mass shootings in the US this year, with the most recent taking place on Monday at Michigan State University, where three students were killed and another five were injured.
A series of mass shootings occurred in California in January, leaving 11 dead in a dance hall in the Monterey Park neighborhood of Los Angeles and 7 dead in the seaside community of Half Moon Bay.
