Oakbrook Center mall reopened Friday. Oakbrook Center mall reopened Friday with a large presence of police after a shooting that occurred at the center on Thursday night wounded four people according to police.
Police say one suspect shooter is being held, along with a “companion.” The charges are still currently pending.
Another suspect is at large at the time of writing Police said they had some clues.
The three suspects were wearing blue coats. He was believed to be aged in his 30s.
The squad cars were seen around the mall on Friday morning however, shoppers did not appear to be concerned, saying they felt secure enough to complete their Christmas purchases in the western suburbs.
“I just wanted to make sure the mall was open,” Tinley Park resident Taura told the Tinley Park News. “I wasn’t concerned, no, because I saw last night it was an isolated incident, so I knew that it wasn’t like a mass shooting.”
It’s almost like the shooting didn’t happen. Almost.
“I went up to the perfume section and talked to the girl at the Coco Chanel section and she pointed at the door where the shooter came in right by her,” said Steven Stratton, a shopper.
“I wasn’t concerned because I knew there would be a heavy police presence here today,” said Marilyn Sliter, a shopper. “I wasn’t concerned at all. But then again, I wasn’t concerned all through Christmas.”
Oak Brook police said a security guard who was working the Christmas detail at Nordstrom saw shots fired shortly around the time of 6 p.m. and was immediately notified to report the incident.
Watch: The most recent news from the police regarding the Oakbrook Center shooting
Police reported that two people were firing gunfire at one another in a hallway on the east side of the mall, which is adjacent to Nordstrom.
Four people were injured in the incident caused by the gunshots, police said. Police say one of the shooters suspected is an older 30-year-old man who was shot four times and required numerous operations.
The three other victims of the shooting comprise two 40-year-old women and one female in her 20s who were shopping at the time of the shooting. Each was hit one time.
The victims of all gunshots suffer no life-threatening injuries, according to police. They were in stable condition on Friday morning, but they were still at the hospital.
A woman also in her 20s injured her ankle after escaping the gunfire and was transported by ambulance to be examined for a broken bone.
“Everybody was panicking,” said Diane Sprague, witness. “We tried to keep everyone calm and safe: Stay away from the windows. We locked the doors and stayed away from the back door. We gave people some water to calm people down. There were children and elderly people. Made sure everybody was not injured.”
WATCH: Witnesses report the shooting during the shooting at Oakbrook Center
Another suspect was arrested after he ran into Nordstrom and tried to escape according to police. Police say they believe they found him with one of those involved in the shooting.
Two guns were found. They are both pistols, police claimed, one of which was the 9mm.
READ MORE Oak Brook mall retail theft Targeted by thieves who grab and run is Nordstrom twice in the span of one day, according to police.
The mall was packed with Christmas shoppers on the verge of leaving at the moment of the incident.
Mall shoppers have explained the chaos when holiday music was interrupted by shootings.
“I start walking, and all I hear is ‘bam, bam, bam.’ And I kinda stop, and I look and I go, ‘no, there’s no way;’ so then I keep walking and all of a sudden I see a stampede of people just running towards me,” said Nicole Stevenson, who was protected by the mall for two hours at the mall.
Stevenson was only a couple of shops away from the spot in where police believe two men were shooting pistols at one another.
She ended up staying in a departmental store located in the mall along with fifty other people.
“For the first time I think in my life I was actually fearful for my life that something might happen,” she explained.
Families went to the mall to greet their loved ones after the lockdown lifted.
“It is really sad and scary,” Nordstrom employee Susie Nash said. “I’ve always felt so safe working here, so you know just thoughts and prayers; I know we have plenty of security.”
Some are struggling to figure out their minds around what transpired.
“It was things you see in the movie and when you walk out of the store, your hands are up, you see the SWAT team, all the police. It’s crazy,” Stevenson declared.
The last incident of an incident of shooter at Oakbrook Center was nine years ago, Oak Brook police said the incident occurred when a security agent fired during a dispute.
