Three people have died in a shooting in the parking lot of a Target at 8601 Research Boulevard in North Austin, Austin Police said. A suspect is in custody.
Police were called to the scene at 2:15 p.m., and officers arrived within 4 minutes, Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said. Austin-Travis County EMS arrived shortly after.
Two people were pronounced dead on the scene, and the third person died after being transported to a hospital, said Robert Luckritz, chief of Austin-Travis County EMS. First responders treated a fourth person on the scene for unrelated injuries, he said.
Davis said the suspect fled the area in a stolen vehicle, crashed the vehicle and hijacked a second car before being tased and arrested by police in South Austin.
The suspect is a 32-year-old white man who has a history of mental health issues. Davis said the suspect “has a rap sheet” with the department and has been placed in emergency detention holds. According to Travis County, officials can place people in these emergency holds at psychiatric facilities when there is evidence of “imminent, substantial risk of serious harm to self or others.”
Police do not know the motive for the shooting at this time, Davis said. As of Monday afternoon, officials hadn't released information on the victims.
"This is a devastating situation, and my heart is with the victims and their families," Mayor Kirk Watson said on social media. "While this remains an active and ongoing investigation, what I’ll say is that this was a sickening, cowardly act of gun violence."
This is a developing story.
