Panic Grips Mall After Robbery, Shooting

Police locked down a Woodland Hills mall Sunday night after fatally shooting one armed robber and launching a massive search for another suspect who may have disappeared among the shoppers.

People ran in terror or hid in stores, closets and dressing rooms while officers conducted a store-by-store search of the vast Westfield Shoppingtown Promenade that is home to more than 50 shops and restaurants.

The robbery occurred in Macy’s department store about 5:15 p.m., and panic soon spread across the mall. Many people escaped in the first moments, but police did not know how many remained trapped in stores as of 11 p.m.

During the hours-long search, many people were escorted by police officers out of the mall in single-file lines.

“We will not stop until we search every part of the mall, every locked closet,” said Sgt. John Pasquariello. Police did not rule out the possibility that some shoppers were being held hostage somewhere in the shopping center.

The incident started when two men tried to rob the third-floor jewelry department. Police, tipped off by a 911 call, responded within minutes and confronted the gunmen.

One was shot dead at the scene, and the other may have escaped into the mall, police said.

Police found a handgun in the parking lot, suggesting that the suspect may have fled the mall. As of 11 p.m., officers were still conducting their search. Initial police reports that three suspects were involved were changed after witness interviews, police said.

The robbery marked the first time since the 1997 North Hollywood shootout between police and two bank robbers that all of the department’s SWAT team units were called to an incident, police said. After the shooting, shoppers described a confusing, chaotic scene. Employees and shoppers dashed for cover, hiding where they could. Those near the exits ran toward the parking lot.

Matt Iwanoff, 16, of Agoura Hills was in the Macy’s men’s section when he heard five or six shots. “People were just going nuts,” he said. “I just ran out with a whole bunch of people.”

When Christine Tharp, 30, heard gunfire she dashed into a woman’s dressing room along with 10 others and lay on the floor. Later, store employees took them to an office where they waited for more than an hour for SWAT team members to rescue them.

Joseph Esposito was strolling near the mall lobby when he saw a middle-aged, barefoot woman in a nightgown with its tag still on. “She was shaking and walking in circles,” he said. “She said she saw a person who was dead inside the store.”

Inside, security guards and police officers ran down corridors directing customers to get into the nearest stores.

Vicky Clubb, assistant manager of Z Gallerie, said she was ordered to lock the doors and spent the next few hours watching officers scouring the mall with drawn guns.

“It was really nerve-racking,” Clubb said. “All they told us was that there was a robbery and suspects were in the mall.”

Brendan Dowie, 19, of West Hills was walking out of a furniture store near Macy’s when he heard screaming and saw people running and hiding behind kiosks in the mall. “It was mayhem. It was nuts. I saw people getting down all around me. I was pretty scared,” he said.

Connie Ryan, a Costa Mesa resident, was locked in the Bombay Company store when she saw a man running through the mall. “I heard a man saying, ‘Shooters in the mall! Shooters in the mall!’ ” she said.

As during the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, many of those trapped used cellular phones to tell loved ones they were OK.

Siavash Soleiman, 18, of Woodland Hills got a call from his mother, May, at 6:30 p.m. His mother, a manager in Macy’s gift-wrapping department, told him about the shooting and said she and other employees were hiding in a storeroom. “She said, ‘Just in case you turn on the news, I want you to know I’m safe,’ ” said Soleiman.

At the AMC theaters, moviegoers’ experiences were very different.

Some were given the option of staying and watching the movies. But others were seen desperately trying to climb over gates. Others were taken out single file.

Esposito said he saw about 200 people trying to get out of the movie complex.

“You could tell in their faces there was panic everywhere,” he said.

At the Wolfgang Puck Cafe, diners weren’t told why the doors were locked. While watching people run through the mall, they continued with their meals.

“There was nothing to do but to eat,” said Gary Reyna, 37, who added that he was locked in the restaurant for about an hour. “People were agitated, but most sat quietly and didn’t know what to do.”

*

Times staff writers Richard Marosi, David Pierson and Kristina Sauerwein contributed to this report.