Police remain at mall after gun scare

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Law Enforcement across Central Texas are on high alert following the tragedy in Newtown, Conn. Austin Police swarmed Barton Creek Square Mall Tuesday after getting a report that several armed men were in the building.

Police say initially a woman called Nordstrom department store and told an employee she saw a group of men go into the mall, appearing to be armed. The employee then called police.

More than two dozen APD officers searched the mall for the described armed group of men.
 
"Several two-man teams of officers entered the mall and conducted a thorough search of the mall interior, and they did not locate any threat at all," said APD Lt. Ely Reyes.

Being one week before Christmas, hundreds of shoppers found themselves unsure what was going on
    
"We saw an officer with his AK-47 out, and I said, 'Do we even attempt to go in or not?'" said Johnny Morales.

Other shoppers coming out of the mall say they knew something wasn't right, but weren't sure just what was happening.

"I was actually on the phone with my mom, and one of the stores was closing, and I knew something must be going on here," said Sean Reid.
    
Lt. Reyes says some stores closed temporarily, but the mall itself remained open. The potential threat prompted nearby Eanes ISD to put schools on lockdown. Ronda Prothro was picking up her daughter from Hill Country Middle School to go home sick, when she found out what was going on.

"Parents were outside because we weren't able to access the school, and the principal came driving up and told us that just as a precautionary measure the kids were on lockdown, but that     everyone was safe," said Prothro.

Her daughter Lauren says the situation did stir up some concern at the school, but she's glad the district took caution.

"You can never be too safe about things like that," Lauren Prothro said.

And that's why police say now--and always--they're preparing for the unexpected.

"We have officers throughout the department that are trained to respond to these types of incidents. They are always on the street--24 hours a day, seven days a week. So any time we get a call like this we have to take it seriously and respond with the appropriate resources," said Lt. Reyes.

Barton Creek Square Mall General Manager Tim Hill released a statement Tuesday saying:

"As always, we encourage shoppers to be alert to what is happening around them, and to immediately report suspicious activity to mall security or a store employee.... We are grateful for the Austin Police Department's immediate and thorough response."

Although APD says they determined there was no threat at the mall, they continued to keep officers present throughout the day Tuesday.
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