One person was killed and three more wounded Wednesday in a shooting at a shopping center in El Paso, Texas, adding to the dozens of people already killed this year in mass shootings across the United States.
El Paso police said hours after the shooting that two people had been taken into custody, though details of what prompted the shooting remained unclear.
Interim Police Chief Peter Pacillas said Cielo Vista Mall was still considered a crime scene and would remain closed until authorities complete their investigation.
Pacillas stressed that the danger had passed.
“There is no danger anymore. I want to repeat that: there is no longer any danger to the public,” Pacillas said.
The shooting occurred in a busy shopping area and in front of a large Walmart parking lot where 23 people were killed in a racist attack against Hispanics in 2019. El Paso, with a majority Latino population of about 700,000, sits on the US border. with Mexico, where residents of both countries cross frequently.
“Today’s shooting at Cielo Vista Mall has brought back traumatic memories for many of us. Know that you are not alone,” Democratic Rep. Veronica Escobar, whose district includes El Paso, said on Twitter.
He urged anyone in need to contact the city’s crisis hotline.
The United States has seen dozens of people die in mass shootings so far in 2023, most recently on Monday at Michigan State University, where three students were killed and five more wounded. In January, 11 people were killed in the Los Angeles-area city of Monterey Park as they welcomed in the Lunar New Year at a dance hall popular with older Asian-Americans.
Pacillas said the two people arrested after Wednesday’s shooting, as well as all the victims, were men.
The University Medical Center in El Paso said in a statement that two gunshot victims being treated there were in critical condition.
The condition of the third victim was not immediately known.
Police previously said the shooting was reported at the mall’s food court.
Authorities set up a reunification center at a nearby high school, where those affected by the shooting could reconnect with their loved ones.
Source: VOA Español
