Shoppers, employees urge action after panic at Carolina Place mall

PINEVILLE, N.C. — Pineville Police say they found no evidence of a shooting inside Carolina Place mall, but a large fight ended up causing panic and chaos for shoppers and employees alike this past weekend, prompting some to call for change.

Channel 9′s Almiya White spoke to shoppers and store owners who want security changes after the confusing and frustrating scene on Saturday.

Cameron Coleman, who works at Zumiez inside Carolina Place, said he followed his gut feeling after a fight broke out Saturday night inside the mall.

“My reaction was to close my store and then just make sure my people are safe,” Coleman told White.

According to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, the large fight triggered the false report of a shooting at the mall.

Things were back to normal on Tuesday, but the chaos was still in some shoppers’ minds. Alfred Smith told White that he would have been at Carolina Place on Saturday, but he changed his mind at the last minute.

“Saturday, we were thinking about which mall to stop by just to walk around and shop, and we almost came here but instead we went to Concord,” Smith said. “So after we heard about what happened, we said, ‘Wow, we could have been there.’”

Coleman said that even though the fight turned into a larger scene, there are safety measures in place that make him feel safe.

“One of the biggest things we have is an officer out here with a K-9 that is firearm trained that can sniff out firearms and stuff,” Coleman said.

But he and Smith agree that they think more can and should be done.

“The presence of security is a deterrent. When you see officers, when you see a police car parked out front, it’s a deterrent,” Smith said.

“Maybe like a curfew or something,” Coleman said.

We reached out to Carolina Place, and a spokesperson said their highest priority is safety. However, they didn’t want to publicly discuss their security protocols.

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