Police Question People About Independence Center Shooting

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — Police confirmed Tuesday that they are questioning a few people about the shooting at Independence Center that wounded a man and a woman and turned the busy mall into a crime scene late Saturday afternoon.

Police say the shooting occurred near the lower-level entrance to the Sears store at about 4:30 p.m.  The two victims have minor injuries and have been released from the hospital.

Police interviewed two people they thought were connected to the shooting but they are not in custody and police no longer think they were the shooters. Late Saturday night police released surveillance pictures of two men they consider persons of interest in the case.

The mall was locked down while police secured the scene, searched for suspects and interviewed witnesses.

“I was really freaked out,” said Jade Thomas, who was inside the mall at the time of the shooting. “I didn’t know what was going on and I was really scared.”

Several shoppers said they felt like they were in limbo for about 15 minutes while police tried to determine what had happened and keep everyone safe.  After a few hours, the hundreds of shoppers detained inside the mall were finally allowed to go home.

“It’s a concern,” said Independence Police Capt. John Cato. “We’re in a world where people tend to be a little more violent than we’re accustomed to or maybe we’d be comfortable with so safety is a concern always.”

Vernon Meckel, the Independence Center mall manager said the mall has a good record on security and an excellent security staff. In a statement released Saturday evening, Meckel said, “The staff provides round-the-clock patrols of the interior and exterior mall areas and executes other safety measures to maintain a secure environment for shoppers.”

Officers aren’t saying if the people being questioned are the men in the surveillance photos or if they came in voluntarily or were brought in by police.