(Updated at 8 p.m.) A 37-year-old Fairfax County resident has died after he was shot by police at Springfield Town Center this afternoon (Thursday), the Fairfax County Police Department announced.
The shooting occurred outside Target in the 6600 block of Springfield Mall. The Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department transported the victim to a hospital, where he died.
According to Police Chief Kevin Davis, the department had warrants for the man’s arrest after he reportedly stole a handgun from a family member, fired it inside their home, and fled the scene on foot. The man isn’t being publicly identified yet, pending next-of-kin notification.
The FCPD’s fugitive warrant squad had been tracking the man since that incident on Sunday (June 26) and got “intelligence” that he would be in the Springfield Town Center area today, where patrol officers at the mall located the man in the parking lot.
The officers spotted his vehicle based on a photo shared by the fugitive warrant squad. The man saw the police car and got back into his vehicle, prompting officers to approach his vehicle and direct him to show his hands, police said at a press conference.
“They said to him show me your hands and drop the gun at least 20 times. At least one of the officers yelled out that they could see a gun in his hand,” FCPD Lt. Col. Brian Reilly said, citing footage taken by body cameras worn by all three officers.
An anonymous tipster told FFXnow earlier that they saw police with guns drawn and heard someone say “he has a gun.”
Two out of the three present officers fired their guns, hitting the man through his car, Reilly said. Since the vehicle’s doors were locked, a window was smashed so the officers could pull the man out and administer medical aid.
No police were injured in the encounter, police said. The FCPD doesn’t believe there was any larger threat to public safety. A semi-automatic pistol was recovered from the vehicle, according to police.
“I feel very comfortable that these police officers acted appropriately. They acted bravely,” Davis said. “…A man armed with a firearm told 20-plus times to drop the gun and fails to do so, that’s a problem.”
A Springfield Town Center spokesperson confirmed that there is “an ongoing police situation” in the mall’s parking lot but directed FFXnow to the police department for further information.
A Target employee said the store remains open, as of 5:25 p.m.
The FCPD said that the mall remains open, but with a portion of the parking lot closed off while police process the scene, visitors are advised to enter and exit the complex via Loisdale Road. Many shoppers have been waiting by the curb outside Target, frustrated at being unable to get to their vehicles.
Davis said the body camera footage will be made public within 30 days, per FCPD policy. The involved officers are being interviewed by the department’s Major Crimes Bureau “to see what took place and what they saw during this incident,” Reilly said.
The shooting comes just 10 days after multiple gunshots were fired at Tysons Corner Center, prompting a panicked evacuation of the mall where three people got injured.
“I think we’re all, whether you live in Fairfax County or anywhere in America, concerned about firearm violence anywhere, but particularly public spaces,” Davis said when asked about the Tysons shooting today. “A lot of folks gather here, and again, we’re going into another holiday weekend…Like every other region, [we] in the National Capital Region remain concerned about the prevalence of firearms in our community and they’re in the hands of folks who shouldn’t have them.”
The armed man from the officer-involved shooting died at the hospital. Detectives continue to investigate. The mall remains open and there is no apparent threat to the community. Visitors, please use entrance and exits near Loisdale Rd.
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) June 30, 2022
Brandi Bottalico contributed to this report.