SYRACUSE, NEW YORK — A packed mall in western New York was placed into a panic situation when gunfire rang out during the busiest shopping day of the year.
It all started as a dispute between two parties, which witnesses say quickly escalated to shots being fired.
A 21-year-old gunman shot another man in the leg during a fight in a crowded mall on Black Friday, then tried to drive a friend who had been stabbed during the fight to the hospital, police said Saturday.
But the gunman, Kyree Truax, hit a bus on the way to the hospital after the shooting at the Destiny USA mall, police told the Post-Standard.
via abc7ny
Truax, after hitting the bus, followed the ambulance to the hospital that was carrying his friend.
Officers were on the scene within seconds, as they held a positions around the mall. Officers were able to identify Truax as the person who fired the shots.
Buckner said Truax and the man he shot “had some sort of dispute with each other.” He said the 20-year-old shooting victim was hit twice in the leg. His injuries are not considered life-threatening.
Truax was arrested on charges of assault, criminal possession of a weapon and reckless endangerment. It’s not clear if he has an attorney who can comment on his behalf.
While New York is a gun control happy state, that only really applies to the city. I can guarantee that armed citizens were inside the mall at the time of the shooting.
But an incident such as a dispute verses a mass shooting is two different worlds. In any case, it’s always best to get yourself and your family to a safe location. Getting involved yourself can be a tricky and messy situation, but if the circumstances call for it, decisions can be made to get involved.
Luckily, no innocent bystanders were injured during this personal beef.