A gunman who was last seen armed with a rifle remained at large Saturday morning after four women and a man were fatally shot Friday night at a shopping mall about 65 miles north of Seattle,Washington State Patrol said.
The victims were shot in the makeup department at Macy’s at Cascade Mall in Burlington, Washington, before 7 p.m. local time, police said.
In addition to the four women who died earlier, a male who had sustained life-threatening injuries died at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, several hours after he had been transported there, Sgt. Mark Francis, a public information officer with the Washington State Patrol, announced early Sunday morning.
Police initially said four people were dead, but then revised the figure to three, before updating it back to four fatalities. And police initially said one female sustained non-life threatening injuries, but that was incorrect. Francis said the numbers fluctuated as authorities searched the mall.
Authorities described the “one lone shooter” as a “Hispanic male” wearing a black shirt, who was last seen walking toward Interstate 5. His motive is unknown.
A helicopter, search teams and K-9 units scoured the area around the mall for the suspect.
Sgt. Francis tweeted a photo of the suspect, writing “Here is the shooter. We believe just one shooter … Armed with rifle.”
Mall employees and shoppers said they hid in stores and fitting rooms.
“Out of nowhere I just hear somebody yell and then after that, I turn around and just look at the Macy’s and I just hear shots,” Armando Patino, who was working at the mall’s T-Mobile store, told ABC affiliate KOMO. “I hear one shot and then stand kinda still and like two three other people start running out saying gun.”
Patino added, “I turn around and run to the store. Some people didn’t know where to go. I just moved them into the [T-Mobile] store. We went in the back where we have a door and everything and we just stayed there until they told us to evacuate.”
Stephanie Bose, an assistant general manager at Johnny Carino’s Italian restaurant near Macy’s store at the mall, told The Associated Press she immediately locked the doors to the restaurant after hearing about the shooting from an employee’s boyfriend.
“He was trying to go to the mall and people were screaming,” she said. “It was frantic.”
And Tari Caswell, a shopper in the Macy’s women’s dressing room told the Skagit Valley Herald she heard “what sounded like four balloons popping,” s
She added, “Then I heard seven or eight more, and I just stayed quiet in the dressing room because it just didn’t feel right. And it got very quiet. And then I heard a lady yelling for help, and a man came and got me and another lady, and we ran out of the store.”
Washington Governor Jay Inslee said in a statement Friday night, “We urge residents to heed all safety and detour warnings. Stay close to your friends and loved ones as we await more information and, hopefully, news of the suspect’s capture.”
Law enforcement officers performed an initial sweep of the mall to ensure it had been evacuated, followed by a secondary search.
Sgt. Francis said police began receiving calls of an active shooter before 7 p.m.
In addition to state and local law enforcement, both the FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are involved in the investigation.
The FBI tweeted it has “no information to suggest additional attacks planned in WA state.”
“Authorities described the “one lone shooter” as a “Hispanic male” wearing a black shirt,”…….and carrying a fast and furious rifle supplied by Eric Holder.
I’m sure there are at least six anti-gun laws already written, and waiting in the wings for this event to happen.
“Authorities described the “one lone shooter” as a “Hispanic male” wearing a black shirt, who was last seen walking toward Interstate 5. His motive is unknown.”
I’m going to go out on a limb here, and suggest something radical. This may have been an actual, UNSCRIPTED shooting for a change.
We have no name, no religious affiliation, no Fakebook or Twitter rants, no MANIFESTO, no father or mother on CNN telling us they don’t understand how this could have happened, no neighbors telling us he was such a nice guy, never bothered anyone.
And lastly, we have no patsy, either dead or alive.
This one doesn’t fit the ‘pattern’ so far. It may have been real this time.
AND WE HAVE A WINNER!!!
Now we’ll be able to start dissecting this b#tch. It’s what we do best.
http://www.kiro7.com/web/kiro/news/local/what-to-know-about-the-burlington-wash-mall-/449647977#
“The FBI tweeted it has “no information to suggest additional attacks planned in WA state.””
That’s because when the FBI plans these attacks they want them to be a surprise.
If they went around telling everyone beforehand, well that would just ruin the surprise.
Innocent bystanders would have time to arm themselves and stand in wait of the perpetrators.
“Surprise!!!”
BANG BANG BANG!!
“Yeah. We knew you was coming. Your two minutes late. Tardy Motherf—–s!”
(Although, technically, the innocent bystanders should already be armed.)
It appears that malls owned by westgate properties have lost favor for shootings, be they real or real fake, and are now being replaced with macerich properties. The last couple mall incidents have involved them. Probably nothing, but interesting.
And again……what wonderful imagery from the 1952 camera’s. And of course still at large so the private merc’s can justify house to house searches. Communist’s marching in Charlotte over a staged shooting. All this sh*t is surreal.
Yep. Looks like a pic of video on a monitor and the video was definitely filmed in Technicrap.
I can’t tell if he’s holding a rifle or a rolled up window shade.
He’s definitely dressed for terror though, with his combat t-shirt and shorts on.
And his infrared Rayban sunglasses.
I concur, I’m going to have to go with the window shade. LOL!
Real vs. False Flag?
Hard to tell, at the moment.
But the victims and timing fit ramping up the “strategy of tension”.
Classic Operation Gladio tactics.
Based on the photo, the only way to determine Hispanic male from Mid-eastern male is if the guy was yelling ‘Viva Mexico.’ Would be nice to know how they made that distinction….
Breaking news: Suspect is from Turkey, but ‘it was not terrorism’ per a F*X news report.
Authorities bused the survivors to a church? WTF? WHY? Couldn’t the family members just pick them up at the mall? Why do they need a private bus to take them to a church for safety? Why don’t they just go home in their own car? Are they that much of a coward? Seriously?
So is this the new thing now with shootings? The government has to provide a pathetic bus for them to take them to a secure location? Is this so the alternative media doesn’t interview them and find out they are full of shit? Is this how they will hide/shield the crisis actors from now on from the alternative media?
Unfrigginbelievable……….
Well, the authorities bused the crisis actors in there in the first place. The least they can do is bus them back to the church staging area so they can pick up their cars and go home.
Oh, and they have to have the post-event debriefing where they are instructed in the rules about talking to the press and sticking to the script.
Any deviation from the script may result in a permanent retirement.
I’m pretty sure that’s in their non-disclosure contract.