Police in Howard County, Maryland, issued a lockdown order and launched an investigation Saturday after an altercation at Columbia Mall escalated into a deadly shooting.
Police in Howard County, Maryland, issued a lockdown order and launched an investigation Saturday after an altercation at The Mall in Columbia escalated into a deadly shooting.
A Howard County Sheriff’s Office spokesman said officers responded to a report of a shooting at the mall around 6:10 p.m.
Police said “an altercation occurred between two individuals” in the food court area of the mall and gunshots rang out, leaving one unidentified man dead.
“We believe this was not a random incident and that this was a targeted victim,” spokeswoman Shelley Llewellyn said at a press conference Saturday night.
Police later determined that those involved in the shooting had left the mall grounds.
Llewellyn said police were working to identify who was involved in the incident, separating attendees into small groups, escorting them out of the mall and speaking to witnesses.
“The reason we’re escorting them out rather than opening the doors and letting everyone out at once is not for safety reasons,” Llewellyn said. “It’s really for investigative reasons.”
The Howard County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the mall was closed at 9 p.m.
The spokesman also said the Howard County Police Department’s response was inspired by an earlier mass shooting at Columbia Mall, in which a gunman killed two people and then himself in January 2014.
“Unfortunately, we’ve had a mass shooting a few years ago, nothing like what happened tonight, but it’s allowed us to strengthen our training and our coordination with the mall,” Llewellyn said, “so we knew we were all doing the right thing to ensure safety tonight, and I’m happy to report that there are no other injuries or dangers.”
Howard County authorities are currently investigating the incident, and no one is allowed inside the mall while the investigation continues.
WTOP’s Ralph Fox, Veronica Canales, Terik King and Grace Newton contributed to this report.
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