Tag: Crime Publicsafety

(FOX 9) – The man who allegedly fired shots inside the Mall of America last week and the person police say directed him to do it were arrested Thursday after a week on the run.

FOX 9 is told Shamar Lark and Rashad May were taken into custody during a traffic stop Thursday in the Chicago area, seven days after shots rang out inside the mall on August 4.

This week, police said they believed Lark was the man who fired shots inside the mall after an altercation at the Nike store. Officers say it appears May “prompted” Lark who then fired multiple shots. Thankfully, no one was struck by the gunfire, but the act sparked a panic that had people running and looking for safety while officers swept the mall.

In the days after the shooting, three other people were arrested on charges of aiding Lark and May: 21-year-old Denesh Raghubir of Minneapolis, 23–year-old Delyanie Kwen-Shawn Arnold of Burnsville, and 23-year-old Selena Raghubir of Bloomington.

There was talk that Lark and May were prepared to surrender to police earlier this week but that never came about.

Shooting and charges

On August 4, police working at Mall of America responded to multiple gunshots at the Nike store, where they found three shell casings on the floor inside the entrance. Officers checked surveillance video, which showed a fight breaking out involving six people near the checkout of the store, causing customers to run away.

Then two people involved in the altercation left the store briefly before the suspect returned and fired a handgun several times at the males involved in the fight. The suspected shooter, identified Monday as 21-year-old Shamar Lark, and another man, identified as 23-year-old Rashad May, then ran out the north doors of the mall, into the IKEA parking lot, charges said.

It was later learned the two men may have been picked up by a Best Western hotel shuttle at IKEA and were taken to the hotel, just south of Mall of America.

Police believe May called Arnold a few minutes after the shooting, and he received five calls from Arnold between 4:20-4:23 pm, the complaint said. Arnold then contacted his girlfriend, Selena Raghubir, who is an assistant manager at the Best Western, as well as Selena Raghubir’s cousin, Denesh Raghubir, who picked up Lark and May at IKEA in the Best Western shuttle.

Denesh Raghubir told police he knew the two men were friends of Selena Raghubir, and when he dropped them off at Best Western, Selena Raghubir immediately left the front desk and he didn’t see her for about 45 minutes, charges said. He said Selena Raghubir later called him and asked him what time police left.

On Aug. 5, officers searched Arnold and Selena Raghubir’s home and vehicle, where they found the shirts the men were wearing at the time of the shooting, charges said.

subsequent search

During a Monday afternoon news conference, Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges released photos showing Lark and May. Hodges says May “prompted” Lark to shoot up the store – which Lark followed through on.

Police issued a nationwide warrant for Lark and May and had information that the duo could be in the Chicago area.

“You cannot, in a free society, continue to enjoy all the freedoms that we have and when you show a complete lack of respect for humanity by firing in a crowded mall store,” said Chief Hodges. “We cannot tolerate that as a society.”

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (FOX 9) – Three people, including Best Western employees, were charged Monday in connection to the shooting at Mall of America on Thursday, Aug. 4. The shooter remains at large and has not been formally charged.

They’re accused of helping the shooter and another man evades arrest.

The three people charged are:

• Denesh Raghubir, 21, of Minneapolis, is charged with aiding an offender to avoid arrest
• Delyanie Kwen-Shawn Arnold, 23, of Burnsville, is charged with aiding an offender to avoid arrest
• Selena Raghubir, 23, of Bloomington, is charged with aiding an offender to avoid arrest

The charges

Police working at Mall of America responded to multiple gunshots at the Nike store, where they found three shell casings on the floor inside the entrance. Officers checked surveillance video, which showed a fight breaking out involving six people near the checkout of the store, causing customers to run away.

Then two people involved in the altercation left the store briefly before the suspect returned and fired a handgun several times at the males involved in the fight. The suspected shooter, identified Monday as 21-year-old Shamar Lark, and another man, identified as 23-year-old Rashad May, then ran out the north doors of the mall, into the IKEA parking lot, charges said.

It was later learned the two men may have been picked up by a Best Western hotel shuttle at IKEA and were taken to the hotel, just south of Mall of America.

May called Arnold a few minutes after the shooting, and he received five calls from Arnold between 4:20-4:23 pm, the complaint said. Arnold then contacted his girlfriend, Selena Raghubir, who is an assistant manager at the Best Western, as well as Selena Raghubir’s cousin, Denesh Raghubir, who picked up Lark and May at IKEA in the Best Western shuttle.

Denesh Raghubir told police he knew the two men were friends of Selena Raghubir, and when he dropped them off at Best Western, Selena Raghubir immediately left the front desk and he didn’t see her for about 45 minutes, charges said. He said Selena Raghubir later called him and asked him what time police left.

On Aug. 5, officers searched Arnold and Selena Raghubir’s home and vehicle, where they found the shirts the men were wearing at the time of the shooting, charges said.

The complaint says, “The assistance provided by Selena Raghubir, Denesh Raghubir and Arnold and the misinformation provided to police resulted in the flight of [the two men] and the interference in the investigation of the shooting at the Mall of America.”

The three people charged are in custody and are scheduled to make their first court appearance at 1:30 pm on Tuesday. The two people they’re accused of helping after the shooting remain at-large.

Search for the suspects

During a Monday afternoon news conference, Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges released photos showing Lark and May. Hodges says May “prompted” Lark to shoot up the store – which Lark followed through on.

Thankfully, no one was hurt by the gunfire but the shooting created a panic with people rushing out of the mall while police with rifles swept the stores, looking for the shooters and victims.

Police are asking members of the public for help finding Lark and May. A nationwide warrant has been issued for their arrests.

“You cannot, in a free society, continue to enjoy all the freedoms that we have and when you show a complete lack of respect for humanity by firing in a crowded mall store,” said Chief Hodges. “We cannot tolerate that as a society.”

Chief Hodges also warned anyone else who might be helping the suspects that they will arrest any other individuals who aid the wanted men.