**Updated to include the identity of the shooting victim.**
OCALA, FL (352today.com) – The hustle and bustle of the holiday season turned into panic and chaos at Paddock Mall on Saturday afternoon when gunshots rang out.
The gunfire left one man dead, a woman shot in the leg, many others injured as the crowd ran for cover and countless others emotionally shaken from the experience. Just before midnight on Saturday, the Ocala Police Department (OPD) identified the shooting victim as 40-year-old David Nathaniel Barron. “The Ocala Police Department extends our deepest condolences to the families of the victims and we are committed to bringing the perpetrator to justice,” said OPD in a news release.
OPD says the first call came in around 3:40 p.m. as an ‘active shooter’ situation.
|REAL-TIME REPORTING: Shooting at Paddock Mall in Ocala as it unfolded
“This was not what we would consider an active shooter,” Ocala Police Chief Mike Balken said during a news conference in the mall parking lot. “There was a shooting that took place inside the mall that we believe was possibly a targeted act of violence.”
Balken said the shooting happened in a common area and the person responsible took off, leaving the mall. As of 11 p.m. Saturday night, law enforcement were still actively looking for the shooter and seeking leads to identify him.
“We know for a fact that our shooter was a black male, dressed in a black hoodie, black pants and a black mask partially covering his face.”
The shooting call drew massive law enforcement presence from both OPD and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. SWAT team members from both agencies responded and received aerial support from a law enforcement helicopter.
Inside the mall, scared shoppers and employees sought safety. Videos posted to social media showed people inside stores with the security gates shut.
|HAVE VIDEO OF THE INCIDENT? Police ask anyone who has cell phone video of the incident to share it with them. Email videos to MediaRelations@ocalapd.org or text 352-656-6137.
Kandace Morales was at the mall with her six-month-old daughter. She had just gotten her daughter’s ears pierced and was about to take her to see Santa when the shooting happened. She ducked for cover in a family nursing room nearby.
“I heard screaming and crying, and I was afraid to come out,” said Morales. “I thought, ‘I need to get out of here.'”
Morales said law enforcement got on the scene quickly. Chief Balken said police evacuated the mall and did a sweep looking for people who were still sheltering in place.
The shooting happened in the court near Macy’s. That’s just steps away from where the Marion County Children’s Alliance provides a gift-wrapping service to shoppers. The make-shift kiosk is staffed primarily by volunteers and is a fundraiser for MCCA to support programs to help victims and survivors of domestic violence. Monica Bryant is the Family Violence Prevention Coordinator for MCCA. She had just left for the day when the shooting happened. She confirmed everyone who was on the gift-wrapping team Saturday night is fine. Unfortunately, she says some people’s gifts were left behind.
Outside, Steven Rogers was trying to make his way through the traffic to pick up his mom who works at JCPenney. He snapped photos as he navigated the mall mayhem.
Several people lost their shopping bags and other belongings in the scramble for safety. It’s unclear at this time if Paddock Mall will reopen on Sunday for Christmas Eve shoppers. We left a message for mall management and mall security and had not heard back at the time of publication.
Chief Balken said the woman who was shot in the leg is expected to survive her injuries. Others who will be nursing their wounds through the Christmas holiday will surely be thankful it wasn’t worse.