By The opinion
Dec 23, 2023, 7:12 PM EST
A man died and a woman was wounded by a gunshot a shooting occurred inside a shopping center from Ocala, Florida, on Saturday afternoon, according to Ocala Police Chief Mike Balken.
Balken said police received 911 calls about multiple shots fired inside the Paddock Mall. He added that the call came in describing an “active shooter” scenario, so they responded with a heavy police presence.
“Officers immediately entered the mall and ultimately discovered that this was not an active shooter situation,” Balken said.
Instead, police characterized the shooting incident as an act of violence directedBalken said.
Paddock Mall in Ocala was evacuated and there is no longer a threat, police said in a Facebook post.
The Ocala Police Chief confirmed that an adult man was found dead inside the shopping center from gunshot wounds.
Balken said one woman suffered a gunshot wound to the leg and was transported to a hospital, adding that she is expected to survive.
Police are still searching for the suspect, who was described as a black man wearing a black hoodie, black pants and a black mask over his face, Balken said.
“Please avoid the area while police investigate,” authorities said in the Facebook post.
In a statement posted to X, formerly Twitter, after the press conference, the Ocala Police Department said they were conducting a “secondary sweep” of the mall Saturday night.
Deaths from gun violence are approaching 42,000 so far this year, according to Gun Violence Archive.
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