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Stabbing attack at Minnesota mall leaves at least eight injured
A person carried out a stabbing attack on Saturday at a mall in St. Cloud, Minnesota, injuring at least eight people before dying in the violent incident, officials said.The attack at the Crossroads Mall about 60 miles (97 km) northwest of Minneapolis broke out shortly after 8 p.m. local time, St. Cloud police said in a statement. Witnesses told media that they heard gunshots. Police later confirmed the suspect was killed, according to the St. Cloud Times. Move along, nothing to see here.
Update 1:10 AM ET: In a press briefing, police officials confirmed that the suspect made “references to Allah” while conducting the terrorist attack and “asked at least one person if they were Muslim when they assaulted them.” Officials noted that there is “no evidence” that any other individuals were involved in the attack, and there is “no imminent threat” to civilians as the suspect was killed in a confrontation. The suspect is has no significant criminal background, police noted, with only three incidents on his record, “most minor traffic violations.” The individual in question was wearing a “private security uniform.” Officials do not have any evidence tying it to “any other incident,” including the bombs discovered in New Jersey and an explosion in New York. St. Cloud Police Chief Blair Anderson said police still “need to figure out what the motivation was” before confirming that the incident was an instance of jihad. Mayor Dave Kleis said the mall will remain close “until further notice.” Update 1:04 AM ET: Witnesses speaking to the St. Cloud Times report seeing the victims “drenched” in blood, and witnessing one victim bleeding from the back and another “from the side of his face.” Minnesota radio station Rockin’ 101.7 reports that police have postponed a press conference scheduled for 11PM local time until more information is readily available. The radio station notes that reports indicate the suspect is dead and his remains are in the mall’s Macy’s store. Update 12:33 AM ET: Video uploaded to YouTube by Hannah Kosloski appears to show the developing situation within the Crossroads mall. Police have begun to allow people to leave in an orderly fashion, demanding identification to chronicle every person who was in the mall at the time of the attack. Update 1:04 AM ET: Witnesses speaking to the St. Cloud Times report seeing the victims “drenched” in blood, and witnessing one victim bleeding from the back and another “from the side of his face.” Minnesota radio station Rockin’ 101.7 reports that police have postponed a press conference scheduled for 11PM local time until more information is readily available. The radio station notes that reports indicate the suspect is dead and his remains are in the mall’s Macy’s store. Update 12:33 AM ET: Video uploaded to YouTube by Hannah Kosloski appears to show the developing situation within the Crossroads mall. Police have begun to allow people to leave in an orderly fashion, demanding identification to chronicle every person who was in the mall at the time of the attack. The incident appears to have begun sometime between 8:20 and 9PM local time, according to various local news reports. The St. Cloud Times reports that the mall has been walled off by a “major police presence,” and that multiple people have been stabbed. While the police confirmed that they believe the suspect is dead, though they are following other leads on potential accomplices, they have not indicated the condition of those injured. “Unofficial reports from the scene say there may be multiple gunshot and stabbing victims,” the Times reports. Local NBC affiliate KARE 11 has posted some photos of the mall and confirmed that the suspect is dead. Witnesses say the incident occurred quickly, with no notifications from mall personnel that an emergency was ongoing. Those who escaped say they only began running for exits when seeing a swarm of people screaming and running out. In a press statement, St. Cloud police confirmed only that there were “multiple stabbings” and the “individual responsible… is deceased inside the mall.” Police are conducting “precautionary searches,” and “the incident is ongoing and is an active investigation.” They have scheduled a press conference for 11PM local time. Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2016-09-18 |
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