CNN
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A man drove into a Texas mall after a 19-mile police pursuit, striking four people before he was fatally shot by responding law enforcement officers, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
A trooper shot and killed the suspect after the chase led them into the mall, Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Bryan Washko said at a Saturday news conference.
A Texas Highway Patrol Trooper attempted to stop a pickup truck around 5 p.m. Central Time, Washko said.
The man driving the vehicle was called in as possibly driving while intoxicated, Washko said.
After the suspect exited the highway, he entered the Killeen Mall parking lot, where he drove through the glass doors of a JCPenney store’s main entrance, according to Washko.
“The suspect drove through the doors and continued to travel through the JCPenney store, striking multiple people,” he said.
Four people were injured by the pickup truck as it drove through the mall and were taken to a hospital and a fifth went to the hospital on their own, Washko said.
Troopers and local police followed the truck through the mall on foot and engaged in gunfire with the suspect to end the threat, Washko said.
“There’s people in here shopping for their families, their children, their friends, loved ones, and these kinds of things we don’t like to see, obviously, and we pray for their recovery,” Washko said of the victims.
Killeen Police spokesperson Ofelia Miramontez told the Killeen Daily Herald “a pursuit came in from Belton,” a city about 19 miles east of Killeen.
Nathan Carrasco told CNN he was in his car with his friends in the Killeen Mall parking lot when they witnessed a truck drive through the JCPenney door and run over people.
Carrasco said two police vehicles chased the truck, and just before officers nearly cornered the truck, the truck drove through the department store.
Carrasco and his friends jumped out of the car to make sure everyone was OK, he said.
“There were people lying on the floor with glass everywhere,” Carrasco said, adding people rushed into the store to help a woman and a young girl who was bleeding.
Rose and Will Parker told CNN they were near the coffee shop near the JCPenney when they heard several gunshots and saw people running.
“I grabbed my wife, and we went into the coffee shop. We locked up in a back room,” Will Parker said.
They were in the coffee shop for about 15 minutes when a security guard escorted them out of the mall.
“It was a mess,” Parker said. “I’m thankful to the gentleman, the security guy, that helped us out.”
Authorities have yet to identify the suspect, according to Washko. “We need to find out who he was, where he’s coming from, why he’s running,” he said. “All those questions need to be answered.”
Killeen is about 150 miles south of Dallas and is home to the Army’s Fort Cavazos, formerly Fort Hood.
This story has been updated with additional information.
