Eight injured in rush to flee North Carolina mall after shots fired

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Shooting at mall in Raleigh, NC

Police put mall on lockdown, close nearby roads

Eight people were injured fleeing a busy shopping mall in Raleigh, N.C. after apparent gunshots rang out Saturday afternoon.

Police and emergency personnel were called to the Crabtree Valley Mall at around 2:45 p.m. local time. More than four hours later, the Raleigh Police Department said officers had not located anyone with gunshot wounds and no one was in custody.

Officials said that eight people between the ages of 10 and 70 were transported to local hospitals with minor injuries suffered in the rush to evacuate the building.

Raleigh Police Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown said investigators had not found any shell casings, so she could not confirm whether there had been a shooter. But multiple witnesses reported seeing a gunman.

Antonio Richardson, who owns a clothing store in the mall, told the Associated Press that that he was standing at the entrance to his store when he saw two men who appeared to be in their early 20s arguing in the food court.

Richardson said he saw one of them pull out a gun and begin shooting. As he was running away, he said he heard as many as four shots.

Witness Mark Rush told the station that he was walking out of a cell phone accessory store when he heard "about five or six" shots. He said the shooter was "10 or 15 feet" away and was carrying a handgun.

Rush said he and his family managed to get out safely.

Video posted on social media showed patrons running out of a store exit.

John Riggleman and Kristin Warring told AP that they were heading to a video game store when they heard the shots. They ran into the store with dozens of others before the doors of the mall were locked.

Warring said she later heard an additional series of shots.

Police told them they could leave the store at about 3 p.m.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.