Teen arrested in gang-related Black Friday shooting that caused panic at California mall

A teenage suspect was arrested Sunday in a shooting at a Silicon Valley mall on Black Friday that injured three and sent shoppers scrambling for cover, police said.

Police posted a photo Monday of the 17-year-old suspect in the incident at the Westfield Valley Fair mall. A caption with the image of the suspect, whose face was not shown, read, “Ladies and gentlemen, we got him.” The suspect, who was not identified because he is a minor, was arrested Sunday night at a home in San José, officials said.

A 21-year-old woman seen pushing a stroller at the mall also was arrested after allegedly helping the shooter escape. Prosecutors said they have a familial relationship. Both will face charges in the coming days, Santa Clara County Dist. Atty. Jeff Rosen said.

The shooting centered around a group of individuals who wore gang-related clothing to the mall and one carrying a handgun in his waistband, San José Police Chief Paul Joseph said. Conflict arose when they ran into another group from a rival gang, he said, and the suspect shot his intended target, an adult man.

Two bystanders, a 16-year-old girl and an adult woman, also were hit by gunfire. All three victims were treated for wounds that were not life-threatening and released from the hospital, officials said.

The juvenile suspect has a criminal record, Joseph said. He fled from police in February and was charged with possession of a loaded firearm and placed on deferred judgment with a probationary plan. Joseph said the incident showed the problem of insufficient criminal sentences for juveniles.

“Young offenders feel almost no fear of consequences. They bring guns into our malls and fire indiscriminately,” Joseph said. “I’m not sure what tragedy will finally be the watershed moment when we fix what is clearly broken.”

Police at the Westfield Valley Fair mall after a shooting on Black Friday.

(Shawn Kulasingham)

Shawn Kulasingham, 23, was at the mall with family when he said he heard a loud pop around 5:35 p.m., then saw a “sea of humans” running in every direction.

“It was a stampede,” he said by phone hours later. “The building was almost shaking.”

Kulasingham grabbed his sister and father and ducked into the nearest store that looked secure, an Abercrombie & Fitch. They hid behind clothing racks and cabinets while people panicked, he said.

They spent about 20 minutes inside the store before staff asked them to leave in a single-file line with a police escort. The parking lot was a mess, Kulasingham said, and he forgot his Black Friday haul — a coat he’d bought — at the Abercrombie store.

“The fear was palpable. This is a really difficult thing to happen during the holiday season,” said Kulasingham, a former congressional staffer who was home visiting family for Thanksgiving. A shooting in his hometown mall alongside the recent killing of a National Guard member in D.C. was a lot to bear, he said.

At least 20 customers were ushered into storage closets in Bloomingdales by store security alongside Bilal Zuberi and his wife, who posted about the incident on social media. He did not hear shots but said there was general panic and an overhead announcement telling them the doors were locked and they should remain in place.

They tried not to panic or talk about the shooting because there were children sheltering with them, Zuberi said.

Police gave an all-clear to leave the store and mall around 7 p.m., he said, and traffic was backed up from all exits as hundreds of people attempted to leave.

“Thankful for police, first responders, and mall staff who may have been scared themselves but stepped up to guide people to safety, man escalators so nobody could cross floors etc.,” he told The Times in a message.

Patrons of the Westfield Valley Fair mall exit after the shooting.

(Shawn Kulasingham)

Emergency dispatch calls to the police and fire departments at 5:55 p.m. said there were two to three injured people and the shooter was still at large. Calls starting around 5:35 detailed that people were sheltering in place and reported bullet casings and a trail of blood from Macy’s, dispatchers said.

In a post at 6:31, the city department said there was no longer an active shooter.

Officers arrived to a chaotic scene, according to their radio dispatch feeds.

“We have multiple people running across the street,” one emergency responder radioed. Fleeing patrons caused a traffic jam while crossing a nearby street from the mall.

“My prayers are with the victims and I know our officers are doing everything they can to find the person responsible and hold them accountable,” San José Mayor Matt Mahan said in an X post.

Police spokesperson Sgt. Jorge Garibay said the shooting took place on the second floor of Macy’s. Other photos on X also showed shattered windows at the Bowlero bowling alley adjacent to the Macy’s, courtesy of Cristian Rodriguez, a bystander who told La Voz News he saw the shooter and broke the window to help people escape.

Westfield Valley Fair is one of the San Francisco Bay Area’s largest malls, with 2.2 million square feet of retail space. A $1.1-billion expansion was completed several years ago.

Westfield Valley Fair’s eastern section is within San José, while the mall’s western section is within Santa Clara.