Police arrest man in shooting at Indiana Walmart
HOBART, Ind. Sept 12 2019 A man was shot Sunday afternoon at a Walmart in Hobart, Indiana, police said.
Two people were taken into custody.
As CBS 2’s Lauren Victory reported Sunday night, this was the second bout of gun violence at the Walmart at 2936 E. 79th Ave. in Hobart within just the past year.
Sunday night would have been like any other night at the Walmart off of Route 30 – except associates weren’t the only ones keeping things tidy. Inside, police were busy picking up the pieces of yet another shooting at the store.
“Coming here to pick up a few things and we see you guys, and we know something’s not right,” said would-be Walmart shopper Christopher Cottrell.
Cottrell and other would-be shoppers didn’t get the message the Hobart Walmart had been evacuated, then closed – but many people on social media did.
The Hobart police and fire departments were called at 3:50 p.m., and officers and medics found one gunshot victim in the Walmart, police said.
Twitter immediately lit up with rumors of an active shooter, but police shut those down within 20 minutes. A customer had been shot inside, but it was an isolated incident and there was no threat to the public.
It turned out it was all a quarrel inside the store between people who knew each other.
Walmart could not say exactly where in the store the shooting happened.
A male suspect was taken into custody without incident by an off-duty East Chicago, Indiana police officer who happened to be shopping in the store, police said. A woman accompanying the suspect was also taken into custody, police said.
The man who was shot was undergoing surgery his condition was stabilized, police said.
Some Twitter users reported fears of an “active shooter” at the Walmart. But police said there was no threat to the public after the shooting and arrests.
Hobart police were investigating, and were waiting to interview the victim, suspects, and witnesses to determine a motive and other facts.
Merrillville and Lake County, Indiana police, as well as the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives also responded.
The store remained closed early Sunday evening as the investigation continued.
“This is the second time here, and I just don’t understand why it keeps happening here or really what happened,” said would-be Walmart shopper Tina Roesman.
As Roseman alluded to, flashing lights are a familiar scene at the Hobart Walmart.
It was the second shooting at the same Walmart in less than a year.
On Sept. 30, 2018, a gunman shot two people in the parking lot of the same Walmart. A 9-year-old boy and his 25-year-old father were wounded in the shooting.
One of the victims ran inside the store, alarming customers, according to police. At the time, employees at the Walmart store had just finished active shooter training a few days before.
Alex Cordell Hughes, 26, was charged in the 2018 shooting. Police said Hughes and the man he allegedly shot were in rival Gary gangs.
“This world ain’t like it used to be,” Roseman said.
And some argue, this section of Northwest Indiana is not like it used to be either.
“This area used to be, I don’t want to say upscale, but very nice,” Cottrell said. “It’s our home. Born and raised in this area and it’s surprising.”
Still, security website SafeWise still lists Hobart as one of the top 20 safest cities in all of Indiana – a message that Walmart likely wants to push.
The store should reopen on Monday morning.
Any witnesses who have additional details are asked to call Hobart police Sgt. Rod Gonzalez at (219) 924-1125, or rgonzalez@cityofhobart.org.
CBS
