Three people, including a child, were killed Monday afternoon in a shooting outside a Target store, and the suspect was arrested after stealing a car and fleeing the scene in Austin, Texas, police said.
Police responded to a shooting call at 2:15 p.m. and officers found three people who had been shot in the parking lot, Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said.
The shooting happened outside the store, the chief said.
The suspect, identified as a 32-year-old man, stole a car from the scene and fled, crashed that car, and then stole another vehicle before he was arrested, Davis said.
“This is a very sad day for Austin,” Davis said.
The victims were not identified Monday by authorities, but they were an adult and child pronounced dead at the scene, as well as another adult who was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead there, Austin-Travis County EMS said.
The suspect, who was not identified at a news conference, “does have a mental health history,” the chief said. He was arrested in South Austin by officers who used a stun gun, Davis said.
The motive in the shooting is under investigation.
One of the shooting victims is believed to be the driver of the vehicle that was stolen at the Target, Davis said.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson expressed his condolences to the families of the victims.
“This is a devastating situation, and my heart is with the victims and their families. While this remains an active and ongoing investigation, what I’ll say is that this was a sickening, cowardly act of gun violence,” he said on X.
“I am grateful for the quick response of our APD officers and other first responders and want to thank them for their actions to apprehend the suspect,” he wrote.
Emmy Beck-Aden
contributed
.