Original story published at 5;43 a.m. Updated at 11:00 a.m. to include information from the Ocala Police Department news conference.
OCALA, FL (352today.com) – The Ocala Police Department (OPD) says officers have successfully apprehended the man wanted in the deadly shooting at the Paddock Mall.
OPD says 39-year-old Albert Shell Jr. is currently in custody. A check of the Marion County Sheriff’s jail website shows he was booked into the jail at 5:06 a.m.
Police say they arrested him in collaboration with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office and the United States Marshals Service at a home about 20 miles southwest of Ocala in an area known as Florida Highlands.
Police say they surrounded the home and negotiated with Shell Jr. for about two hours before he surrendered peacefully.
Bodycam footage shows Shell being arrested just before 2:00 a.m. Monday.
https://youtu.be/fbGJEhsTwNg
Shell is suspected in the shooting that happened two days before Christmas at Paddock Mall that killed 40-year-old David Barron, injured a woman and scared hundreds of holiday shoppers and mall employees.
Police offered a reward for information leading to the arrest of Shell. Initially, the reward started out at $5,000 and was raised three times ultimately reaching a total of $20,000 last Friday.
Police News Conference
OPD held a news conference at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, January 8, to update the community.
Police Chief Mike Balken says due to the public nature of the deadly shooting, it impacted the entire community.
He thanked the agencies and the individuals who have worked tirelessly around the clock to bring this case to resolution.
Balken expressed deep gratitude to the community for the outpouring of numerous tips saying it played a “critical and crucial” role in the outcome. He said the department received more than 100 tips and is confident that reward money will be paid out.
|WATCH: Ocala police hold news conference regarding arrest of Paddock Mall shooting suspect
Mayor Ben Marciano offered condolences to friends and family of Barron, “Our hearts and prayers go out to you.”
“We are a resilient community,” said Marciano. “My commitment to you as our mayor is to make sure we work with law enforcement to make sure that we are doing everything within our power to address these issues moving forward and that we are a safe and healthy community.”
Shell has an extensive rap sheet. He’s been booked into the Marion County jail 19 times over the past two decades with charges ranging from burglary and robbery to drug possession and grand theft.
“His criminal history alone tells me he should have never been on the street to have been able commit this crime. We’re going to see to it that he spends the rest of his life behind bars,” said Balken.
|WATCH: A look at Albert Shell Jr.’s time in and out of the Marion County jail
The day of the shooting, police said the crime was a “targeted act of violence. ” At the news conference, Balken said they know that Barron and Shell Jr. had a prior relationship but wouldn’t go into detail about the nature of their relationship nor the motive in the case. “There’s no reason to believe this is anything other than a beef between two individuals,” said Balken.
Shooting Described in Detail
In an arrest affidavit, police detail the timeline and new information about the events at Paddock Mall. Police say after reviewing surveillance video a man wearing a red baseball hat who police identify as “subject 1” in the report and who they previously identified as Shell and another man wearing a white tank top and green urban-style camo pants approach Barron.
According to the affidavit, Barron is observed punching subject 1. The second unidentified person walks into a store and is not observed again.
The report says Barron runs away toward Macy’s and subject 1 is observed chasing Barron. While subject 1 is chasing Barron, subject 1 is observed pointing a handgun at Barron until he falls to the ground approximate 15 feet from where the pair originally met.
|READ: Paddock Mall Shooting OPD Arrest Affidavit
When Barron falls to the ground, subject 1 appears to shoot him and then has a malfunction with his gun. The report says the pair get up off the ground and run approximately 83 feet towards Starbucks. Subject 1 appears to shoot Barron again while running towards Starbucks. Barron again gets up and continues running to which it appears subject 1 shoots him again and engages in a physical altercation with Barron on the ground in front of Starbucks. Subject 1 then runs approximately 49 feet to Macy’s and then returns to Barron on the ground and appears to shoot him again. The last shot appears to be to Barron’s head to which he then lies motionless.
The report continues, “Subject 1 then runs back towards Chick-Fil-A. A retired police officer along with a reportedly active Hawaii police officer is observed engaging subject 1 to which subject 1 flees towards the JCPenney exit, dropping a firearm from his pants which was secured by the retired officer.”
A total of seven gunshots can be heard in the video surveillance.
Police say the gun is a FN Five-seveN 5.7×28 which, according to the manufacturer’s website, is semi-automatic pistol.
Police also say that they spoke to an employee of the CBD store in the mall who witnessed the shooting. OPD says that person says Barron pleaded for his life while on the ground before the man shot him again. The mall employee also provided a description of the shooter identifying a tear drop tattoo under his left eye.
The family of Barron celebrated his life on Saturday. His fiancée has created a GoFundMe to help with funeral expenses and for the couple’s three children.
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