OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Police arrested two men Sunday after a shooting at Oak Park Mall.
The shooting happened after a suspected shoplifter grabbed an undercover officer’s gun and fired a gunshot. Overland Park police confirmed two undercover officers were watching a pair of suspected shoplifters inside the mall.
Officers arrested one of the men inside the mall and said they took another suspect into custody shortly after the first arrest.
Shoppers inside the mall, like Julia Rivera, recorded video of one of the arrests.
Security evacuated the mall as police arrived at the scene.
“I was about to walk into Macy’s when I heard a gunshot. I saw people running immediately and I hit the floor and went to hide close to the walls by some shelves. I stayed there for a couple of hours until I came to be rescued,” Ronnie, Oak Park Mall shopper, said.
Police said no injuries were reported.
“No one was hurt this afternoon and suspects are in custody after shots were fired at Oak Park Mall. An Overland Park Police officer attempted to make contact with two shoplifting suspects near the mall’s food court. One of the suspects reached for the officer’s gun and fired a shot. Thankfully, it did not hit anyone and no one was hurt,” a news release from the department said.
Mall security told KCTV5′s Mark Poulose that no one will be allowed back into the mall until it is cleared by police. Investigators said the mall closed at 5:35 p.m. and would not reopen Sunday evening.
This is the second shooting at a Kansas City-area mall in three days.
“There was just a shooting in Independence. This is Kansas. I just told my mom, I said, ‘Nobody will ever do that in Overland Park,” literally one day ago. Asia Taylor, who works at Oak Park Mall’s food court, said.
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