SAN ANTONIO – The latest of four incidents involving guns at major area shopping malls in less than a month’s time occurred midday Tuesday at Ingram Park Mall.
San Antonio police said a mother and daughter were confronted near the mall entrance by two masked men armed with a handgun. The preliminary report said the men who ran up to the women “made no demands for property or money,” but continued to chase after them as they fled.
Sgt. Jesse Salame, San Antonio Police Department spokesperson, said the men threatened the mother and daughter, saying, “We’re going to kill you.”
He said the women then ran, sustaining minor injuries in a brief fall.
Salame said even so, “They remained alert enough to run toward the mall and call for help right away.”
He said police units down the street responded within seconds, but the men were gone.
“They left in a green SUV, possibly a Tahoe, so a bigger SUV,” Salame said.
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He said police are still investigating, but it’s thought the women were randomly targeted in the mall parking lot.
According to the initial report, witnesses reported hearing three shots fired into the air, but no spent shell casings were found.
Yet this latest incident couldn’t have come at a worse time.
“It’s concerning for us,” Salame said.
The year began with a woman at La Cantera being threatened by a man with a gun, demanding money.
Last Friday, employees at a jewelry store at South Park Mall were held at gunpoint by three men, forcing them to lie on the floor. Police said a glass display case was shattered so several pieces of jewelry were taken. The trio remain at large.
On Sunday, a botched robbery at Rolling Oaks Mall ended with a man being shot to death by one of the suspects, after he stepped in front of his wife to protect her. That suspect was then critically wounded by another shopper with a concealed handgun license. Both suspects are now facing capital murder charges.
Another two days after that was the latest incident at Ingram Park.
Elena Robles, an Ingram Park employee who stopped in the parking lot when she saw the police activity, asked a question many others are asking, “What’s going to happen next?”
“We want the community to feel safe and we want to apprehend these criminals that are out here, trying to do some of the crazy things we’ve seen,” Salame said
He said the incidents are part of a national increase in crime.
Salame said SAPD will continue to work with area malls to try to ensure the safety of shoppers and employees.
But he also urged the public to “not let your guard down.”
People should always be aware of their surroundings like the mother and daughter at Ingram Park Mall, Salame said.