Arrest Made in Nation's Latest Mall Shooting

Police have arrested a suspect in connection with a shooting at a busy shopping mall in South Carolina’s capital on Saturday that left 14 people injured. Columbia Police Chief WH “Skip” Holbrook said 22-year-old Jewayne M. Price, who was one of three people initially detained by law enforcement as a person of interest, remains in police custody and is expected to be charged with unlawful carrying of a pistol, per the AP. Fourteen people were injured during the shooting at Columbiana Centre, Holbrook said in a news release Saturday. The victims ranged in age from 15 to 73.

Holbrook said no fatalities have been reported but that nine people were shot and five people suffered injuries while attempting to flee the mall for safety. Police said the 73-year-old victim continues to receive medical treatment, but the other victims have been released from local hospitals or will be shortly. “We don’t believe this was random,” Holbrook said. “We believe they knew each other and something led to the gunfire.” Investigators believe that at least three suspects displayed firearms inside the mall but are working to determine how many suspects fired weapons. Police said at least one firearm was seized.

The shooting is the latest in a rash of shootings at or near malls across the country:

• A 15-year-old boy was shot in the head Wednesday outside Brooklyn's Atlantic Terminal Mall. His injuries were not believed to be life-threatening. Officials said he was with a group of boys when they got into a dispute with a second group.
• On Tuesday, a Southern California shoe store owner mistakenly shot a 9-year-old girl while firing at two shoplifters at the Mall of Victor Valley, police said.
• And earlier this month, police said six people were killed and 12 others wounded in Sacramento, California, during a gunfight between rival gangs as bars closed in a busy area near the Downtown Commons shopping mall and the state Capitol.

(More mass shootings stories.)