Brooklyn MN March 17 2020 One person was injured and multiple people were arrested after an officer-involved shooting at a Walmart in Brooklyn Park Monday afternoon.

Brooklyn Park Police Chief Craig Enevoldsen said Walmart employees had called them about “suspicious activity” involving a group of customers, potentially shoplifting. He said it was not related to general anxiety over food shortages.

After initiating contact with the suspect in the parking lot, police said a brief confrontation between officers and the suspect ensued, and the suspect then started running away and shooting at the officers.

“It was just chaos. It was just a bunch of chaos,” said Ebony Gray, who was shopping inside Walmart at the time. “I was talking to my mom on the phone and I was like, ‘Mom, they’re up here shooting!'”

Officers returned fire, striking the suspect. The suspect was then taken to a local hospital with injuries not considered to be life-threatening.

“He was running away from officers shooting at them and officers returned fire,” Chief Enevoldsen explained.

Police said about 600 people were at the store at the time and the exchange of gunfire in the parking lot involved “a lot” of bullets.

“The workers were yelling, ‘Run! Run! Get to the back!’ So we’re all running, trying to get to the back where they put us in their safe room,” Gray said. “I’m just nervous. I am crying. It’s just all bad. It was just all bad.”

Chief Enevoldsen said the suspect was shot by police and taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. A total of three people were taken into custody.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is taking over the investigation.

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