False Report of Active Shooter at Texas Mall Sparks Chaos and Confusion
HOUSTON, Texas — News reports and social media messages indicate there may have been a shooting at t..
HOUSTON, Texas — News reports and social media messages indicate there may have been a shooting at the Memorial City Mall on Saturday night. One hour later, Houston police say the reports are false. The incident appears to have been a smash and grab robbery.
Houston news media outlets and users of social media are reporting a possible active shooter or some type of shooting at the holiday-packed Memorial City Mall in Houston on Saturday night. First reports came out at about 7:45 p.m. CST. There are no official reports at this time but at least one Twitter user said there may be fatalities.
UPDATE 9:40 p.m.: Breitbart Texas spoke with 15-year-old Mikayla Howard who was in the mall at the time of the incident. “I was shopping for dresses when a frantic lady came over the speaker and told us to get out of the store,” she said. “I heard some loud noises and people started running saying there was a shooting. I have never experienced this type of fear before. Seeing all the people running scared out of the mall is something I will remember forever.”
Facebook Photo
UPDATE 9:05 p.m.: Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo tweeted that the reports of a shooting at the mall are “false.” The incident turned out to be a “smash and grab robbery at a jewelry store.”
Reports of active shooter at Memorial City Mall have been confirmed to be false. Situation is stable and under control by @houstonpolice incident was actually a smash and grab at a jewelry store. No shooting or injuries have occurred.
— Chief Art Acevedo (@ArtAcevedo) December 3, 2017
UPDATE 9:00 p.m.: Houston Police tweeted a confirmation about reports of shots at the mall. Police say at this time, “there’s no evidence a shooting has occurred. Very fluid, active scene.”
We received a call about 745pm of possible shots fired at Memorial City Mall. Several officers responded. At this time, there’s no evidence a shooting has occurred. Very fluid, active scene. PIO is en route.
— Houston Police (@houstonpolice) December 3, 2017
The scene at the mall became chaotic as people tried to flee the scene while emergency responders poured into the mall.
The Houston Chroniclereports that a call came in to the Houston Police Departement at 8:05 p.m. Police officials told the local newspaper there is “pretty big chaos” and a “possible active shooter.”
Facebook user Jose Fernandez posted a video from inside Memorial City Mall. “Somebody got shot or something.” He said there are possibly bodies laying near the Macy’s store.
Twitter user David Velez, @NJJETS, tweeted a photo from inside a bathroom in the mall. The photo shows the door baracaded with furniture and people hiding in fear.
@KPRC2Cathy@KPRCkeithg@KPRC2 praying wife’s in restroom. #memorialcitymallshooting memorial city mall shooting pic.twitter.com/6cshkuxsDp
— David Velez (@NJJETS) December 3, 2017
Twitter user @DuckgonAnimates posted a video of people being evacuated from inside the mall. “There has been a shooting in Memorial City Mall,” he posted. “We have just been escorted out of the mall and have safely returned home.”
THERE HAS BEEN A SHOOTING IN MEMORIAL CITY MALL, IN HOUSTON TEXAS. WE HAVE JUST BEEN ESCORTED OUT OF THE MALL AND HAVE SAFELY RETURNED HOME. pic.twitter.com/36uzYCc9z1
— Duck gon (@DuckgonAnimates) December 3, 2017
I just ran out of Memorial City Mall there’s a rumored shooter to be there shots were rumored to be heard at Macy’s but no injuries or deaths. Police are everywhere and people are evacuating.
— Triet (@37NOUIS) December 3, 2017
Editor’s Note: This is a developing story and will be updated as new information becomes available.
Lana Shadwick is a writer and legal analyst for Breitbart Texas. She has served as a prosecutor and associate judge in Texas. Follow her on GAB @lanashadwick and on Twitter @LanaShadwick2.
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas. He is a founding member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX, Gab, and Facebook.
