See more of our coverage in your search results.
Police have arrested a suspect in a deadly shooting that left a pregnant woman dead and six others injured inside a Spirit Halloween store in Northern California last week.
The Fairfield Police Department announced the arrest Monday, just days after gunfire erupted inside the seasonal Halloween retailer at Solano Town Center around 8:30 p.m. Friday, according to CBS.
Authorities have not yet released the suspect’s identity or details about the charges they may face.
Sign up for the California Morning Report newsletter
The biggest news, opinion and culture shaping California right now.
Thanks for signing up!
The woman killed in the terrifying attack was identified as 31-year-old Constance Hages, whose family told investigators she was pregnant at the time of her death.
Six other people were wounded in the shooting, including a 19-year-old man who remained in critical condition as of Sunday.
Three additional victims were still hospitalized in stable condition, according to authorities.
Investigators believe the deadly violence stemmed from a targeted incident involving a suspect inside the store, rather than a random attack.
However, police have not disclosed what may have sparked the gunfire or whether the victims knew the suspected shooter.
The terrifying violence erupted as the pop-up costume shop was bustling with last-minute Halloween shoppers, sending panicked customers scrambling for safety.
Fairfield Police Chief Dan Marshall said officers responded to reports of gunfire at the mall Friday evening, where they discovered a chaotic scene with multiple victims.
Hages was pronounced dead at the scene, while six other victims were rushed to nearby hospitals.
Witnesses described hearing a barrage of gunshots before terrified shoppers began screaming and fleeing through the mall.
“Well, she just told me she heard some shots and the people running, yelling and crying already,” one man told KCRA, recounting his wife’s harrowing experience inside the shopping center.
The woman reportedly heard approximately seven gunshots before shoppers raced toward parking lots and other parts of the mall.
Another witness described a frantic employee fleeing the Halloween store and seeking refuge at a nearby restaurant.
“I was in Chipotle a girl working in Spirit ran in & said they came in & just started shooting,” the witness said, according to the Vacaville Reporter.
The shooting sparked a massive police response, with heavily armed SWAT officers sweeping through the sprawling shopping center, which houses approximately 130 stores.
Officers also stormed a Regal Edwards movie theater, where about a dozen unsuspecting moviegoers were watching the horror flick “Halloween.”
“Towards the end of the film and all of a sudden a police officer in full SWAT gear came storming in and he had a very large Maglite and he started waving it all over the theater and asked us if anyone came in that had a gun,” Caitlin Fry told CBS Sacramento.
The chilling encounter brought back memories of the 2012 Aurora, Colorado, movie theater massacre that killed 12 people.
“I was afraid after (the SWAT officer) came in, I thought about ‘Dark Knight’ in Colorado — the shooting that happened there years ago,” Fry’s partner, Marty McCoy, said.
“I told her I don’t know what’s going to happen when we walk out of here, just remember ‘run, hide, fight’ and I love you just in case.”
The FBI also joined the investigation, deploying an evidence response team to assist Fairfield detectives.
Fairfield police are expected to release additional information about Monday’s arrest during a 4:30 p.m. update.
