Witness describes chaos during lockdown at Mall of Stonecrest

STONECREST, Ga. - The DeKalb County Police Department is investigating a shooting that occurred at the Mall of Stonecrest on Saturday afternoon.

What we know:

The department was alerted to the shooting around 12:40 p.m. Officers responded to the mall and immediately began a search of the premises. In an early update, police stated the mall was on lockdown and that no victim had been found.

A few hours later, police confirmed a victim had been located, and several people were detained after running away from the mall. The injured person was transported to a hospital and is expected to survive.

The mall remained on lockdown as of 3:45 p.m. as officers continued clearing the building. Police said the process could take several hours and requested that the public continue to avoid the area.

DeKalb police stated there is no further danger to the public. 

What they're saying:

Cynthia Roberts, who has worked at the JCPenney in the Mall of Stonecrest for seven years, said she began seeing people running through the mall around 1 p.m. Saturday. She said someone ran into her store and shouted that there was an "active shooter" in the mall, though she did not hear any gunshots herself.

Roberts said she was never notified of the situation by mall officials. She alerted store leaders to the commotion, and they subsequently closed the store’s security shutters.

"We really got to thank God for what didn't happen, because he could have came in and sprayed up the store," Roberts said. "As these customers are running in or running around, I can see them through the shutter because it's clear. And I'm saying, they're still running. They're running—you know, trying to get away, running and ducking, running and ducking. And I'm like, 'Oh my God, what's going on still?'"

Roberts said it took DeKalb County police more than an hour to arrive at the store. At that point, officers instructed those inside to evacuate. Once they were outside, Roberts said officers did not provide any further information about what was happening.

What we don't know:

At this time, it is unclear what led to the shooting or if any of the detained individuals have been charged.