AURORA, Colo. – Two suspects involved in a fight that led to gunfire inside the Aurora Town Center mall as shoppers were preparing for St. Patrick's Day have been identified by the Aurora Police Department.
Keshaun Thomas-Dunn, 19, and Devonte Shead, 20, were arrested by police after the sound of gunfire sent the crowded shopping center into a panic just before 3 p.m. Friday.
A third person that was arrested following the shooting was not identified as he does not face charges in connection with the shooting. Police said in a press release the man was arrested for unrelated warrants.
Thomas-Dunn (left) was arrested for possession of a weapon by a previous offender as well as for aggravated assault. Shead (right) was arrested for attempted second-degree murder.
Thomas-Dunn was wanted late last year on a shooting/aggravated robbery in Denver that took place in the area of W. 9th Avenue and North Claty Way on Dec. 13, 2017. Court records indicate he was not arrested back then for the crime.
Shead’s history with police dates back to last year. He has been charged with second-degree kidnapping, burglary, felony menacing, theft, criminal mischief, among other charges, according to court records obtained by Denver7.
Thomas-Dunn has been previously charged for possession of a weapon by a previous offender, parole violation, robbery, and second-degree assault.
Mall shooting causes panic among shoppers
While no one was hurt by the gunfire, witnesses described people running into panic as they scrambled for the exists and ran through departments stores to get out.
Twitter user Paris Annalisa Adair was inside the mall at the time of the shooting. She wrote in a tweet that she and 30 other women hid in a storage closet just after gunfire rung out.
Following the shooting in the food court, police checked the rest of the mall for additional witnesses and suspects; portions of the mall were closed.
Police said most of the stores in the shopping center remained open during their investigation. However, the food court and the area around it were closed off as police gathered evidence.
The mall is located southeast of I-225 and East Alameda Avenue in Aurora.