Woman with permit to carry pulls out gun during argument at King of Prussia Mall, police say
Woman with permit to carry pulls out gun during argument at King of Prussia Mall, police say
An woman pulled out a handgun on two other women during a heated argument in the food court at the King of Prussia Mall. No shots were fired and no injuries were reported, but the incident caused many shoppers to flee the food court in a panic. Police later said the woman is licensed to carry a firearm in Montgomery County and will not face charges.
KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa. - A lunchtime panic erupted at King of Prussia mall when a police say a woman pointed a handgun at two other women during an argument in the mall's food court.
The Upper Merion Police Department said the dangerous spat between a woman and at least three other women happened at the Five Guys burger restaurant.
When the woman walked away from the group to wait for her food, police say two members of the group approached her again and continued the argument.
According to a press release, the woman feared she was about to be assaulted and pulled out a handgun from her purse and pointed it at her combatants.
"She started taking off her jacket, she’s getting ready to fight," said Victoria Rudolph, she was in the food court with her brother and father when the chaos unfolded
"That’s when she pulled the gun out of her purse and pointed it right at her head."
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Police say the woman returned the gun to her purse when the two women backed away. Another brief argument ensued, but police say the woman didn't unholster the handgun.
"She was like ‘back off, I will shoot you,’" said Rich Randolph.
The incident caused other shoppers to stamped away from the food court in fear of their safety. Andrew Schiffrin, who works at the nearby Gamestop, estimated 100 people fled the area.
"I'm thinking it's like a mass shooting or something," Rashaud Byrd said. "I've never been through anything like that in my life."
An officer from the Upper Merion Police Department who was on patrol at the mall quickly responded to the food court and placed the woman into custody.
No shots were fired during the incident and no injuries were reported, according to police.
"I saw the gun come out and my first thought was this is real, this is happening," Jared Rudolph said.
Investigators later learned that the woman's gun was legally owned and she did have a permit to carry a concealed weapon in Montgomery County.
Authorities say no charges are being filed against the woman.