Two people were killed in a shooting at an AT&T store inside Crossroads Mall in Gulfport Monday morning, according to local authorities.
Harrison County Coroner Brian Switzer identified the victims as 31-year-old Shane Basquill of Kiln, who was an employee at the store, and 78-year-old Mary Anne Oberlies of Gulfport, who was a customer. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
The Gulfport Police Department said the shooting occurred at approximately 11:14 a.m. Three other people were inside the store at the time of the shooting, according to police.
Authorities identified the suspect as 71-year-old Samuel Jerome Andrews of Harrison County. Police said Andrews entered the store and opened fire on the two victims before fleeing the area in a vehicle. People who called 911 were able to provide police with a description of the vehicle.
Responding officers spotted Andrews' vehicle and conducted a traffic stop. He was taken into custody without incident, and police recovered a firearm.
Andrews was booked into the Harrison County Adult Detention Center. He is being held without bond on two counts of first-degree murder and on a $500,000 bond for one count of shooting into a crowd, according to Gulfport police.
A witness told local media that she and another woman escaped through a back door with their children as gunfire erupted inside the store. She credited employees with helping them get out of the building.
Police have not released a possible motive for the shooting. The investigation remains ongoing, and authorities have continued to investigate the circumstances surrounding the attack.
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