INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A man was stable after being hit by gunfire Monday night inside Castleton Square Mall as holiday shoppers filled the stores and an adjacent movie theater, police say.
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department initially reported no one was hurt, although a few shoppers were checked out for injuries, and all shoppers were safely evacuated from the mall.
A short time later, IMPD reported a man was stable at Eskenazi Hospital with a gunshot wound received at the mall.
Investigators think people “known to one another” had some sort of dispute, leading to the gunfire. Officer Tommy Thompson, an IMPD spokesman, says the shooting happened inside the mall near a south side entrance at the center of the shopping center.
In an update sent Tuesday morning, IMPD announced 18-year-old Aaron McClure had been arrested for his role in the mall shooting and faces charges of felony intimidation with a deadly weapon.
Thompson told media gathered for an impromptu news conference south of the mall, “First and foremost, we want to just think about how traumatic this was for the families. These individuals involved resorted to using gun violence again for their conflict resolution, and that does not work. You see it here, and how many families were put at risk, and how hard this is for these families, how close it is to the holidays.”
Shoppers and movie goers who talked with News 8 were shocked.
Rachel Clay said she’d hoped to take her kids to see the PG 13-rated action-comedy “Red One” at the AMC Castleton Square 14 theater but was turned away at the door after the shooting. She said the manager came out and apologized for the theater’s closing, and told people that refunds were being processed.
IMPD was sent to a report of shots fired at 8:29 p.m. Monday. Indianapolis medics were sent about 5 minutes later on a report of an active shooter.
In a post on the X platform about 40 minutes after the shots rang out, the department said, “IMPD does not believe there is any public safety threat in or near the mall at this time.”
“IMPD officers will continue to be at the mall for next few hours investigating what led up to shots fired inside the mall.”
Thompson said off-duty officers working as security personnel for Indianapolis-headquartered Simon Property Group were at the mall, at 6020 E. 82nd St. on the city’s northeast side, when the shots were fired. The shops were set to close at 9 p.m. Monday.
IMPD told News 8 at the crime scene that two shots were fired, one at the Foot Locker shoe store and another at the Kay Jewelers shop.
Just after midnight Monday, IMPD said in a written statement that a bullet hole was found in an interior wall, and another bullet struck an arcade machine.
Police told News 8 at the scene there were two suspects, including McClure.
The mall was locked down per its protocols shortly after the shots were fired.
Investigators were seeking surveillance footage.
Anyone with information was asked to contact Det. Christopher Williams at [email protected] or at 317-327-3475.
News 8’s Cat Sandoval and Reyna Revelle contributed to this report.
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