This is where the "shoot robbers" crowd inevitably leads.
Store owner arrested in shooting of 9-year-old girl at California mall
Store owner arrested in shooting of 9-year-old girl at California mall
The child was shot when the merchant allegedly opened fire on shoplifters.
A store owner has been arrested in the shooting of a 9-year-old girl police said was hit by an errant bullet at a Southern California mall when the merchant allegedly opened fire on a pair of shoplifters he was chasing.
Marqel Cockrell, 20, was being held on $1 million bail after he was arrested in Nevada and booked on suspicion of attempted murder, the Victorville Police Department announced Wednesday.
The shooting unfolded around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Mall of Victor Valley in Victorville, police said.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department sent deputies to the mall after receiving multiple 911 calls reporting gunfire at the shopping center, authorities said. Multiple law enforcement agencies also responded to the scene as the mall was placed on lockdown and officers began to evacuate people and searched for the shooter, who apparently fled by the time officers arrived.
Deputies found the wounded girl and immediately began rendering medical aid, Victorville police said. She was taken to Loma Linda University Medical Center, where she was in stable condition.
The girl's family members told ABC station KABC in Los Angeles that she suffered a gunshot wound to the arm.
Investigators believe the shooting occurred near a Barnes & Nobles outlet at the mall. Overnight, investigators worked to identify Cockrell as the suspect in the shooting.