UPDATE
According to the Raleigh Police Department, there is neither an indication that a gunshot was fired at the Crabtree Valley Mall on Saturday, Aug. 13, nor a means to definitively rule out that possibility.
The department followed up with 911 callers who might have seen someone with a firearm or someone whose actions raised a question as to whether they fired a gunshot. Those follow-ups ruled out those reported sightings as being related to the sound that was heard.
Video from the mall has been reviewed by the department and all stores have been canvassed by police officers or detectives.
There were holes in the ceiling of the Crabtree Valley Mall that some believed to be bullet holes. Investigation revealed that they were not.
A recording of the sound that was heard has been sent to the FBI Laboratory for analysis, which has not yet been completed. The information from that analysis will be released to the public as soon as possible when doing so will not adversely affect the investigation.
The Raleigh Police Department is continuing its follow-up investigation and continues to ask for any information that might relate to the cause of the sound. Anyone with such information who has not yet spoken to a detective is asked to call the department’s tip line at 919-834-HELP.
ORIGINAL
The Raleigh Police Department is still investigating after gunshots were reported inside Crabtree Valley Mall Saturday afternoon.
Police arrived on scene around 2:45 p.m. and evacuated and placed the building on lockdown.
Officials hosted a press conference before 6 p.m. Raleigh Police Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown said that police have not determined if there was a shooter, and that no one is currently in custody.
Deck-Brown said they cannot confirm gunshots, but that a sound came from the Lush store based on the 911 call.
No life-threatening injuries have been reported, however a number of minor injuries occurred as individuals rushed to leave the mall, according to Assistant Chief of Communication Outreach of Wake County EMS Jeffrey Hammerstein.
“You never want a situation like this but you do what you can to prepare,” Deck-Brown.
Hundreds of shoppers waited for several hours in the parking lot of the Marriott Hotel across the street for law enforcement to allow them to find their cars. Hammerstein said, “the problem now is taking care of [people waiting for their cars in the heat].”
