Toronto police say one person has been arrested after reports of gunshots heard inside Yorkdale Mall on Sunday.
Speaking at a press conference, Duty Inspector Andy Singh said that there was a second male suspect identified but who has still not been found.
Police said the shooting happened in an area in the mall near the Hudson’s Bay.
When asked whether two people had shot at each other, officers confirmed two people had firearms on them but were reviewing security footage to clarify whether it was a gunfight or if only one person discharged a firearm.
Const. Alex Li told reporters that officers were called to the mall at 3:38 p.m.
Li said there were reports of multiple gunshots in the area, as well as crowds screaming and fleeing.
Police confirmed that no one in the mall was injured as a result of the shooting, though ambulances were on scene due to injuries sustained from crowds escaping the scene.
“When our officers arrived, they were able, with the assistance of mall security to locate a suspect,” Li said.
“There was a brief pursuit of this suspect and that individual has been arrested and we have recovered a loaded firearm as well.”
Officers from the guns and gangs unit are reviewing footage from the scene, and the forensic unit is examining the mall.
Singh said that police have begun reopening the mall after an Emergency Task Force cleared stores in the area where the shooting took place. The majority of people have left the mall safely and that officers would remain on the scene to clear the area and continue the investigation, according to officers.
Singh said that the mall would be locked down for the rest of the evening. No suspect info will be released due to the nature of the situation, police said.
Earlier in the evening, Li said the mall remained in lockdown as of 5:30 p.m., but added then it was safe at that “point in time” and that they were still waiting for an “all-clear” before releasing people from the mall.
Ansh Mukherji said he was inside the mall when he heard shots fired.
“We were just outside the changing rooms of Hudson’s Bay and I heard five shots,” Mukherji told Global News.
“And so we went inside the change rooms and the associates brought us to the stock room.”
Mukherji said there were around 40 or 50 people inside the room. Singh later said that shoppers had taken shelter in stores.
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