1 killed, 3 hurt in shooting at El Paso, Texas, shopping mall

Incident took place near where 23 people were killed in 2019

EL PASO, Texas — Police in El Paso, Texas, say one person was killed and three were wounded in a shooting Wednesday in a shopping mall.

One person has been taken into custody, El Paso police spokesperson Sgt. Robert Gomez said. No immediate information was given about that person.

Another person could be involved, Gomez said, and police were looking for them. No description was given.

Gomez said a weapon was recovered at the scene, but he could not provide more information. “It’s too early to speculate on motive,” Gomez said.

The three who were wounded were hospitalized, Gomez said. Their conditions were not known.

Gomez said police believe the scene is secure and that officers are sweeping through the mall to verify that.

“This is a large scene,” Gomez said. “It’s going to take some time to clear the mall.” Authorities have set up a reunification center at a nearby high school.

Police said earlier that the shooting was reported at the shopping mall’s food court.

Wednesday’s shooting at the Cielo Vista Mall happened in a busy shopping area and across a large parking lot from a Walmart where 23 people were killed in a racist attack in 2019.

The United States has seen dozens of people killed in mass shootings so far in 2023, most recently on Monday at Michigan State University, where three students were killed and five more were wounded. In January, 11 people were killed in the Los Angelesarea city of Monterey Park as they welcomed the Lunar New Year at a dance hall popular with older Asian Americans.

In 2022, more than 600 mass shootings occurred in the U.S. in which at least four people were killed or wounded, according to the Gun Violence Archive.