Additional information on the Town East Mall incident

The Mesquite Police Department responded to a shooting call at 3500 Town East Mall at about 5:18 p.m., Nov. 23 that turned out to be an altercation involving several individuals inside the mall.

According to MPD, responding officers entered the mall based on the information being conveyed by multiple callers to 911 who were inside the mall, under the active shooter protocols and training.

Police address a video posted on Facebook that captures officers attempting to assess the situation as it unfolded based on the information received by dispatchers. Officers can be seen commanding those within the area of the barbershop to lay on the ground for safety and to assess the immediate area.

“Despite the frustrations conveyed in the audio of the individual who captured the incident, the Mesquite Police Department's response was to ensure the safety of all citizens inside the mall.  We appreciate everyone who cooperated with the responding officers while we attempted to clarify a chaotic and potentially dangerous scene,” the press release states.

According to MPD, upon arriving at the mall officers were unable to locate a suspect with a weapon or victims of a shooting. Their investigation of the mall security cameras revealed a fight occurred on the upper level of the mall involving eight to 10 suspects.

During the fight, the suspects threw chairs and trash cans at each other and the individuals involved in this fight fled the mall before police arrived on scene, according to a press release.

Police said the mall security video did not show a suspect on camera displaying or firing a weapon inside the mall. Additionally, officers did not locate any shell casings or damage to support a gun was fired inside the mall.

The mall remained open on that day but some stores chose to close for the night, according to police.