Video captures rapid gunfire at Orange County mall
Orange County Sheriff deputies patrol at Fashion Island mall in Newport Beach Saturday, Dec. 15, 2012 after witnesses reported multiple shots being fired in one of the parking lots. Marcos Gurrola, 42, of Garden Grove was taken into custody by bicycle police officers patrolling around the mall. No one was injured. (AP Photo/The Orange County Register, Rose Palmisano) MAGS OUT; LOS ANGELES TIMES OUT
Suspect Marcos Gurrola, 42, of Garden Grove Calif., is seen in an undated photo provided by the Orange County Sheriff's Department. Gurrola was charged with shooting at an inhabited dwelling after firing about 50 shots in the parking lot of the open-air Fashion Island mall Saturday, Dec. 16, 2012. (AP Photo/Orange County Sheriff's Department via Orange County Register) LA TIMES OUT, MAGS OUT
Video captured the sounds of gunfire Saturday in the parking lot of Fashion Island in Newport Beach, where police say a man fired at least 50 rounds.
Marcos Gurrola, 42, of Garden Grove, was arrested in the parking lot near the Macy’s department store shortly after allegedly firing the shots about 4:30 p.m., said Kathy Lowe, a spokeswoman for the Newport Beach Police Department. Officers on bike patrol apprehended the man.
Police searched the mall but did not find anyone who had been struck by the gunfire. The shots were apparently fired either into the air or at the ground.
More than 50 rounds were recovered at the scene, said Deputy Chief David McGill. A handgun was recovered at the scene, but police did not reveal any more details about the weapon.
The mall was crowded with holiday shoppers at the time of the shooting.
Shopper Dena Nassef said she and another person were walking toward Macy’s when people started yelling and running.
Don't miss out on what's happening!
Stay in touch with top news, as it happens, conveniently in your email inbox. It's FREE!
“With what happened in Connecticut, we were freaking out,” she said. “It was like crazy, people leaving stores.”
Ann Butcher, an employee at Macy’s, said she was on the patio at Whole Foods when people started running and screaming. She said some women left their purses and fled.
“That was very scary,” she said.
Shopper Eric Widmer said he was at the Barnes & Noble bookstore when he saw a mother and daughter rush in crying. He said he heard someone scream, “Shooter!”
He said he managed to exit the bookstore and head to Macy’s, which he could not leave.
“I thought, ‘Great, I get to be scared twice,’” he said. “Lightning strikes twice.”
Someone at the shopping mall parking lot recorded the video and posted it on YouTube. He said in the description that he was not sure at first whether the shots were real.
“Before I left, I saw the him on the ground and surrounded by police, but my daughter was very upset so I left to pick them up and get out of the area,” the man wrote. “My wife and daughter were at an ice cream shop in the mall when the shooting happened. They ended up running and screaming with everyone toward the opposite side of the mall.”
