Police continue to search for a suspect in MOA shooting

Bloomington police chief will give an update on the investigation Monday.

August 7, 2022 at 3:31PM

Days after a shooting sent Mall of America into a lockdown, the Bloomington police chief says that still no arrests have been made.

Chief Booker Hodges said on Sunday that detectivea are still working the case and he expects an update for the public Monday afternoon on the investigation.

The Mall of America was on lockdown for about two hours Thursday after gunshots rang out around 4 p.m. Hodges said the shooting was an "isolated incident" involving a dispute between two groups of people.

No one was injured, and the suspect fled on foot. Initially, Hodges said officers believed he was holed up in a nearby hotel, but that didn't turn out to be true.

The gunfire came from outside the Nike store in the northwest section of the mall. It sent visitors into a chaotic scene that was captured on cellphone videos with large groups of shoppers taking shelter in backrooms of stores during the lockdown.

On New Year's Eve, a shooting that injured two people prompted another lockdown at the Mall of America. It left many holiday shoppers shaken and critical of the mall's communication of the lockdown process as some were allowed to exit stores before the active shooter lockdown was lifted.

In that case, police said a dispute between two groups of people inside the Nike store led to the exchange of gunfire.

Within three days, police had arrested a 19-year-old St. Paul man in Roseville. The next day, a second arrest was made of an 18-year-old St. Paul man.

about the writer

about the writer

Kim Hyatt

Reporter

Kim Hyatt reports on North Central Minnesota. She previously covered Hennepin County courts.

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