A Fourth of July weekend afternoon at a suburban Detroit mall turned violent on Friday, when gunfire left two people dead and sent shoppers fleeing.
What police said
The shooting happened around 1:25 p.m. Friday at Fairlane Town Center in Dearborn, near Michigan Avenue and Evergreen Road, The Washington Post reported. Three people were shot: one died at the scene and a second died after being taken to a hospital, while a third was hospitalized with injuries not considered life-threatening. Dearborn police said the victims ranged in age from their late teens to their early 20s.
Investigators believe the shooting stemmed from a dispute between two groups that escalated into gunfire, and that all three of those shot were involved, ClickOnDetroit reported. Police were emphatic on one point: the attack was not random, and they said there was no continuing danger to the public.
The investigation
As of Friday evening, no one was in custody. Police said detectives were interviewing witnesses and people of interest as they worked to reconstruct what happened and identify who fired. Authorities did not release the names of the victims. Because details in the hours after a shooting are preliminary and can change, some specifics may be revised as the investigation proceeds.
The setting
Fairlane Town Center is a large, long-established mall in Dearborn, a Detroit suburb, and the shooting sent people scrambling for exits on a busy holiday-weekend afternoon. Shopping-center shootings, even those that police quickly conclude were targeted rather than random, unsettle communities precisely because they unfold in ordinary public spaces. Local officials urged anyone with information or video from the mall to contact the Dearborn Police Department.
This is a developing story. We will update it as authorities release more information.
