Five dead in US mall shooting

Cops on the hunt after gunman kills five at department store

Police on the hunt for gunman who opened fire at a Macy’s store near Seattle.

BURLINGTON: Police searched for a gunman whom authorities said opened fire in the make-up department of a Macy’s store at a mall north of Seattle, Washington, killing four females and one man before fleeing toward an interstate on foot.

People fled, customers hid in dressing rooms and employees locked the doors of nearby stores after gunshots rang out on Friday evening at the Cascade Mall.

A helicopter, search teams and K-9 units scoured the area for a rifle-carrying man.

“We are still actively looking for the shooter,” Washington State Patrol spokesman Sgt Mark Francis said at a news conference. “Stay indoors, stay secure.”

He said police were seeking a Hispanic man dressed in black and armed with a “hunting-type” rifle, who was last seen walking toward Interstate Five.

Authorities say the motive for the shooting about 97km north of Seattle was still unknown.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation was assisting local authorities as dozens of police officers searched for the suspect. The FBI’s Seattle office said on Twitter that it “has no information to suggest additional attacks planned” in Washington state, but did not elaborate.

A male victim died early yesterday at a Seattle hospital. Authorities had previously announced the deaths of four women. No other details about the victims were provided, including their ages.

Tari Caswell told the Skagit Valley Herald she was in the Macy’s women’s dressing room when she heard “what sounded like four balloons popping”.

“Then I heard seven or eight more, and I just stayed quiet because it just didn’t feel right.

“It got very quiet and then I heard a lady yelling for help. A man came and got me and another lady, and we ran out of the store,” she said.

Stephanie Bose, an assistant general manager at Johnny Carino’s Italian restaurant near the Macy’s store at the mall, said 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.”

Francis said authorities did a “final clear” of the 40,319sq m mall and that 11 search teams and two K9 units were involved.

The parking lot was closed and emergency management officials told people they would be able to retrieve vehicles yesterday.

Governor Jay Inslee said tragedy had struck the state.

“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,” Inslee said. — AP