Police say five people were detained on Saturday in connection with the shooting murder of a 19-year-old male on Friday night in a department store at Bloomington, Minnesota’s Mall of America.
Of the six people detained, three are 17 and two are 18. Police claimed they have at least one shooter in custody, but a second shooter has not been completely ruled out.
Chief Booker Hodges of the Bloomington Police Department told reporters on Saturday that they haven’t established a motive and that the suspects detained seem unwilling to cooperate.
“We know the how, the where, the what and the who, we don’t know the why,” Hodges said.
Hodges said that the victim, whose identity has not been made public, was shot following a brawl that took place on Nordstrom’s ground level.
The argument, which happened between two groups of five to nine people, was caught on the mall security camera. Hodges claimed that a man pulled a gun during the altercation and shot the victim many times.
According to Hodges, it’s unclear what caused the altercation. After the incident, a group of five to seven people, according to him, rushed out of a door.
Hodges expressed his sympathy to the victim’s family for having to bury a member of their loved ones. “They’re in pain, and rightfully so, and for something that should not have happened,” Hodges said.