A little after noon, there was what the police are calling an unintentional discharge of a firearm, which resulted in half of Southdale Mall being placed under lockdown.
After midday, officers from the Edina Police Department responded to a report of shots being fired or a shooting that had occurred close to the Hennepin County Service Center at Southdale Mall.
Someone who was there at the mall provided information to FOX3 and stated that they heard a single shot and witnessed a blood trail. The information regarding the blood trail was validated by the police via the dispatch audio.
According to the audio, law enforcement officers from a number of municipalities and agencies in the surrounding area have arrived to assist with the lockdown of the mall. These municipalities and agencies include Bloomington, Richfield, Hopkins, and Eden Prairie.
Hennepin County Government issued the following statement:
The Southdale Service Center is closed for the remainder of today, January 9. Please use another service center until we can reopen. We apologize for any inconvenience.
A portion of the incident as well as the suspect who was engaged were captured on film by the police, and they believe that it may have been an accidental discharge of a firearm.
A black male with long dreadlocks, wearing khaki pants, and a black cap was seen fleeing from an exit of a shopping centre.
It appears that the lockout will be lifted very soon as police are currently doing a scan of the shopping centre.
