ATLANTA — One person has died and another was injured in a shooting outside of a Kroger supermarket in Sandy Springs on Tuesday afternoon.
Few details were immediately released, but more than a dozen officers descended on the Orchard Park Shopping Center along Dunwoody Club Drive just before 6 p.m. local time. Video filmed by Atlanta's WSB-TV appeared to show crime scene tape surrounding at least four rows of cars in the parking lot.
At the time, Sandy Springs police Sgt. Sal Ortega said at least one person was shot. Police later confirmed that a second person was dead, WSB-TV reported. Police have not released any updates about the person who was injured.
It’s unclear what led to the shooting or whether it happened inside or outside the store. No additional details were released.
Tuesday’s shooting was the latest in a string of violent incidents that have turned bustling metro Atlanta shopping centers into crime scenes. The incident occurred less than 24 hours after a man was shot while leaving Lenox Square in Buckhead.
The high-end shopping mall has been the site of several shootings over the past two years. The Atlanta Police Department has a mini-precinct inside the mall, which has increased security in recent months.
Last month, a suspected shoplifter was arrested after police said he fired at a loss prevention officer outside Perimeter Mall. The man was taken into custody about a half-hour after the incident, which happened in the middle of the day outside the Macy’s, Dunwoody police said. The loss prevention officer said the man was suspected of shoplifting from the Sunglass Hut store inside the mall, authorities said.
Sandy Springs police urged residents to avoid the Kroger shopping center Tuesday evening as the investigation continued. Authorities have not said if they’ve identified any suspects, but urged anyone with information about the case to call 911.
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