1 shot to death, 1 wounded inside Florida mall during Christmas shopping season
OCALA, Fla. – Ocala police said one person was killed in a shooting at the Paddock Mall on Saturday afternoon.
Police said they responded to the mall, which is located at 3100 SW College Road, around 3:40 p.m. regarding a shooting with “multiple shots fired.”
The shooting happened two days before Christmas – a busy time for holiday shoppers.
Police initially described it as an “active shooting situation,” and said they responded “with a heavy police presence and entered into the building to eliminate the threat.”
According to a news release, police said they discovered that there was not an active shooter, but that a shooting did happen in the mall.
“We also believe this shooting may have been targeted,” police said in a social media post.
At a news conference, Ocala police confirmed one man was killed in the shooting and another person was taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg. Other injuries were reported, but the details were not released.
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Syriah Williams, a witness at the scene recorded video on her cell phone after the shooting started. Williams told News 6 that she was shopping with her mother when she heard one shot, then a pause and then three other shots before “chaos erupted.” Williams said employees at the Bath & Body Works opened a back door that allowed people to escape through a hallway that led to a back exit.
You can watch Williams’ video below:
The shooting comes on the heels of two separate shootings were reported in Ocala within around an hour of one another on Friday night, according to the police department.
Ocala police said the mall is being evacuated and have asked the public to avoid the area at this time.
ATTENTION: We are asking anyone who was at the mall who may have video recorded any part of the shooting using their phone to please share it with our detectives. You can send videos to mediarelations@ocalapd.org or send the video to 352-656-6137.
— Ocala Police (@ocalapd) December 24, 2023
Police ask anyone who was present during the shooting, and has information to help detectives, please call Ocala Crime Stoppers at 352-368-7867. In addition, police ask that if anyone has video from the incident, to please share with investigators by sending to mediarelations@ocalapd.org or send the video to 352-656-6137.
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