Shopping centre locked down on reported armed person
Written by admin on June 23, 2024
A major shopping centre in Adelaide has gone into lockdown following reports of an armed person.
Shoppers at the Westfield Marion centre were evacuated on Sunday afternoon and South Australia Police has asked the public to stay away from the area.
Video circulating on social media shows heavily armed SWAT officers storming into the centre.
Sirens can be heard going off in the centre as shoppers scramble to flee.
Other footage from the centre posted to social media shows people locked down and waiting in the Target staffroom.
It is understood the armed person was spotted in the centre’s David Jones store.
“Police are aware of an incident occurring at Westfield Marion Shopping Centre,” a police spokesman said.
“Numerous police patrols are in attendance.
“At this point in time, police advise the public to stay away from the area.”
A photo from the scene shows a billboard warning: “Armed Offender: Escape, Hide, Tell”.
One shopper, posting to social media, writes: “I’m in here, they are evacuating everyone in here”.
Photos from the scene show armed police officers inside the building and worried shoppers who have fled the centre.
Another shopper told reporters of the chaos that unfolded.
“We could just saw random people running everywhere, and my friend grabbed me and we just ran out here,” he said.
The shopping centre is owned by Scentre Group, same company that runs Westfield Bondi, the scene of a horrific mass murder event in April.
The company has been contacted for a response to the unfolding incident.
Westfield Marion is the largest shopping centre in South Australia, located about 15km from the Adelaide CBD in the city’s southern suburbs.
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Police conducted an active armed offender training drill at the centre in mid-June.
Assistant Commissioner Scott Duval will address media at 5.30pm at Marion Shopping Centre to provide an update on the incident.
More to come
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