Man Killed, Teen Girl Wounded In Illinois Mall Shooting; Person Of Interest Located

A person of interest in a shooting that killed a 20-year-old man and wounded a teen girl in an Illinois mall was taken into custody Friday night, police said.

The shooting happened near the food court inside the Fashion Outlets of Chicago mall in Rosemont, Illinois, shortly after 7 p.m. Friday, Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Rosemont police responded to the popular suburban shopping center for calls of shots fired and found a man lying on the ground of the first floor’s south hallway, a short distance from the food court, with multiple gunshot wounds, Rosemont police Sgt. Joseph Balogh said in a statement.

The man, who was later identified as 20-year-old Joel Valdes, of Skokie, was transported to the hospital, where he was later pronounced dead, Balogh said.

A 15-year-old girl was also shot and was rushed to the hospital in critical condition, NBC Chicago reported.

The teen girl, whose name was not disclosed, was found inside a bathroom near the food court with a gunshot wound near her right wrist. Her leg was also grazed by a bullet.

A third person may have been shot and then fled the scene, according to Balogh. However, this remained unclear as of late Friday night.

According to police, there were no other shooting victims found at the scene.

Balogh said that a gun was found at the scene and is being processed as evidence.

Before the person of interest was taken into custody, police were looking for a man in his mid-20s who was wearing a face mask. The suspect allegedly fled the scene of the shooting in a 2008 Maroon-colored Honda with other people, WGN-TV reported.

The car was later found outside of Rosemont with the owner of the vehicle. The unnamed car owner is being questioned about their involvement in the shooting.

It is unknown if the driver of the vehicle is the person who is believed to have fired shots. No other persons have been identified, Balogh said.

Local police said the shooting is believed to have been an isolated incident, and the alleged shooter targeted Valdes.

“We want to urge the public and let them know this area is safe. This was an isolated incident, there was not an active shooter here,” Balogh said in a press conference Friday night.