KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Following the second shooting in as many weeks at Independence Center, additional security and extended curfews will soon be in place to "help curb these issues," according to a mall spokesperson.
"We are hoping with these new measures, we can go back to 'the new normal' quickly," the spokesperson said via email. "We understand that Independence Center is vital to the city and surrounding communities for many reasons, including providing hundreds of jobs and we understand the revenue that this mall creates is very vital. What has happened here is a multifaceted problem that has been exacerbated by the global pandemic."
One person was shot in the head Monday at the Independence Center, according to police. The shooting occurred in the mall's parking lot on 39th Street, where police said it appeared that people in two vehicles were shooting at each other. The individual's injuries are not life threatening, police said.
At least 30 shots are fired outside @IndependencMall in an incident involving two vehicles. One person was shot in the head, @ipdinfo said.
— Andres Gutierrez (@AFGutierrez) January 4, 2021
The individuals in one of the cars are being questioned.
Police are searching for the other car & its occupants. @41actionnews pic.twitter.com/UUZns4qQtj
Police had been searching for a second vehicle, which was located, unoccupied, near the scene of the shooting. The investigation is ongoing.
The city recently imposed a curfew in the area surrounding the center with hopes it would curb the incidents. Matt Ilbak, CEO of the IGP Business Group, which owns Independence Center, told 41 Action News that curfew will be extended to seven days per week, beginning Tuesday.
"We have implemented a new curfew regarding unsupervised teenagers on the weekends when we typically have the most issues. Effective tomorrow morning, this rule will be 7 days a week. No unsupervised minors 17 or younger will be allowed in the mall without a parent or legal guardian after 3 PM," the mall spokesperson explained in a statement.
Officials also are working to double the number of on-site security officers, as well as more patrols in mall parking lots.
Ilbak said he and his team were in a meeting with police discussing the shooting that occurred last week at the mall when Monday's shooting happened.
Police were called to the center on New Year’s Eve after a 16-year-old boy was shot in the leg inside the mall.
Mariela Calderon, who works at Noodles and Company at Independence Center, was in the mall last week when that shooting occurred.
"I yelled at everybody," Calderon said. "I was like, 'Everybody get in the back right now,' because we didn’t know what to do we have all glass windows."
She hid with customers in the Noodles and Company bathroom.
"I didn’t know I was going to go back home that night," she said. "And so it was really upsetting because it’s like – nonsense – it’s why is it happening?"
The previous weekend, 10 people were arrested following “multiple large disturbances” at the Independence Center.
Ilbak said that IGP owns several other malls, some in higher-crime areas than Independence, but has never had incidents like those seen at Independence Center. He also said his head of security from California will lead efforts in Independence.
"We have more police, more security staff, we have the doors curfew," Ilbak said. "Everyone who goes into the center will be under some kind of inspection."
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