A shopping mall located in Adelaide, Australia, underwent evacuation and lockdown procedures on Sunday afternoon due to a confrontation between two groups of young men, reportedly some armed, within the food court area, as confirmed by police.
According to South Australian police, they received initial reports of a disturbance at the Westfield Marion shopping centre and promptly dispatched officers to the scene. Concurrently, the shopping centre's management had already initiated evacuation protocols and secured the premises.
Videos circulated on social media depicted scenes of chaos within the mall as patrons hurriedly made their way to exits while armed police officers swarmed the vicinity.
The incident prompted an immediate response from law enforcement, with a statement issued by South Australia Police acknowledging the ongoing situation at the Westfield Marion Shopping Centre. Despite conducting a comprehensive search of the premises, authorities were unable to locate either of the groups involved in the altercation. Assistant Commissioner Scott Duval reassured the public that there was no persistent threat to safety.
"Based on the information available, it appears this was a targeted incident rather than a random act of violence," Duval stated, as reported by the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
Although no injuries were directly attributed to the altercation itself, reports from Reuters indicated that a 77-year-old woman sustained a possible fracture after falling during the evacuation process. Additionally, a young girl, reportedly 14 years old, was also believed to have sustained injuries amid the evacuation.
This incident follows a tragic attack less than three months ago at a mall in Sydney, where a knife-wielding assailant took the lives of six individuals.
