INDIANAPOLIS — IMPD arrested a 23-year-old man Saturday on an allegation he had a handgun with a Glock switch inside Castleton Square Mall, just one day after an 18-year-old accidentally shot himself at the shopping center.
According to an arrest report, an off-duty IMPD officer was walking behind a man at the mall shortly after 5:30 p.m. The officer said the man, later identified as 23-year-old Walter Oliver, had a bulge in his left waistline, which the officer believed to be a gun.
The officer and mall security asked Oliver if he had a gun. Oliver replied he did not. An arrest report says the officer then tapped the bulge on Oliver's waistline and asked what that was, and Oliver then allegedly ran from the officer and mall security.
Oliver was eventually tased and handcuffed, according to the arrest report. Police found a Glock 35 .40-caliber with a Glock switch in Oliver's waistline.
Also on Saturday, IMPD reported that officers were chasing a man with a gun at the south side of the mall, according to the probable cause affidavit. Mall security was telling a man named Javon Wills to leave the property. Wills refused, according to court records, despite officers warning him he'd be arrested if he refused to leave. Police then arrested Wills for trespassing and say they also found a handgun on him.
According to Simon Property Group, no weapons are allowed inside its malls.
It brings to three the number of people arrested for bringing a gun into Castleton Square over the weekend. It started Friday afternoon, when IMPD were called to the mall on a report of a shooting.
IMPD reported they found 18-year-old Curtis Wilson shot in the thigh. In court records, police claim two groups of people were yelling at each other inside the mall when Wilson took a gun from his brother's waist, shooting several times including a shot he accidentally fired into his own leg. Police reported finding a handgun in the mall near Wilson when they arrived.
Now, experts are cautioning that these incidents at Castleton Square and others like it around the area may keep potential customers away.
“I would not be surprised if people start having this perception that indoor malls are less safe than all other public spaces. That may not necessarily be true, but it’s the information that people receive and the perception that they build. In response, people will unsurprisingly avoid indoor malls and may start to think of open-air shopping centers or malls and even online shopping,” said Vivek Astvansh, assistant professor of marketing at IU Kelley School of Business.
Malls and businesses need to take action to protect customers and rebuild trust, Astvansh said.
"There is I think a greater responsibility of the owners and operators of shopping malls.They must inform the shoppers of what actions they are taking to ensure that the people with guns cannot enter the shopping mall," Astvansh said.
Astvansh also said they should consider measures or tools customers can use to send info if something happen or report an incident that might threaten shoppers.
"How can they inform 911 or the shopping mall police, etc.," Astvansh said. "So it is now incumbent on the shopping malls and owners and operators or property managers to be more proactive and ensure shoppers of their safety."