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Police in Schaumburg, a Chicago, Illinois, suburb, responded to reports that a black Chevy Trailblazer SUV was driving through an indoor shopping mall, beginning its destructive journey inside a Sears store, according to WLS TV News on September 20.
Shoppers who were inside the Woodfield Mall shortly prior to 3 p.m. captured the bizarre scene on video.
One person was reported to be in custody in connection with the automotive rampage, according to WGN TV reporter Vicky Baftiri via Twitter. The WGN reporter also said that two injuries were caused in the incident. However, at about 3:20 local time, Schaumburg police said that no injuries were reported. However, the mall was still being evacuated as of 5 p.m. local time.
The suspect was described as “a young man,” according to WGN TV. Video of the scene showed the man being led out of the mall by police. The suspect appears to have closely cropped hair. At the time of his arrest, he was wearing a red sweatshirt or sweater with a Nike “swoosh” logo across the front of the shirt.
Police clarified that there was no active shooter situation in the mall.
Images published by The Chicago Tribune showed damage at the exterior entrance to the Sears store. The glass doors of the big box store appear to have been completely smashed and destroyed.
The SUV drove through the mall’s lower level, running into several kiosk displays along the way, according to witnesses who spoke to WGN.
One witness told the source that the car plowing through the mall was “definitely intentional, I don’t understand how that could be an accident,” the station’s reporter Ben Bradley quoted via Twitter.