One person killed in shooting at Florida shopping mall

Ocala (Florida), December 24

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A man died in a shooting at a shopping mall in central Florida on Saturday in which the victim was apparently ‘targeted’ for the attack, police said.

Ocala police chief Mike Balken said on Saturday evening that the man was killed after he was shot multiple times in a common area at Paddock Mall in Ocala, located about 80 miles northwest of Orlando. Also, a woman was shot in the leg, police said.

The suspect fled the scene and left behind the firearm, Balken said.

Police responded to the mall around 3:40 PM after calls of multiple shots being fired at the mall.

“Officers immediately made entry into the mall and ultimately discovered that this was not what we would consider an active shooter,” Balken said.

Several other mall patrons also suffered injuries during the shooting, with one person having chest pain and another reporting a broken arm, police said.

An email inquiry was sent to the mall’s owner, WPG. The mall has dozens of stores, including JC Penney and Foot Locker.

Calvin and Diana Amos, who were shopping in the JC Penney store, told the Ocala Star-Banner that they evacuated the store quickly once they figured out what was going on. They described themselves as scared and apprehensive.