Two injured in weekend shooting in Westland Mall, outside of Mitchell’s

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (Fort Wayne’s NBC) - The Fort Wayne Police Department (FWPD) says two people were injured in a shooting just outside of a popular Fort Wayne sports bar over the weekend.

Police say the shooting happened around 1:30 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 27, inside Westland Mall, where Mitchell’s Sports Bar & Grill is located.

FWPD first reported that two small groups of people exited the building and got into a fight outside, leading to the shooting.

Two hours later, FWPD sent a correction saying the two groups actually began fighting while they were inside Mitchell’s and it spilled out into the common area of the mall. Once in the common area, police say shots were fired and an uninvolved woman was struck. She was taken to the hospital in non-life-threatening condition.

Police say the suspects fled after the shooting. A short time later, police say a man arrived at a local hospital with gunshot wounds related to the incident. He is said to be in non-life-threatening condition.

Thursday afternoon, attorneys for Mitchell’s sent WPTA a news release stressing the shooting took place “in the adjacent mall common area and not on the property of Mitchell’s.”

The news release went on to describe the security in place at the bar.  “Mitchell’s utilizes a remarkable multi-level security system each and every night of operation and has gone to great lengths to provide a safe and enjoyable atmosphere for all of its patrons,” Attorney Randy Fisher said.

Fisher also says off-duty law enforcement officers and security employed by Mitchell’s responded to the common area to help after the shots were fired.  “These individuals should be commended on their courageous actions which will hopefully lead to the apprehension of the bad actors involved,” he said.

Fisher says Mitchell’s continues to cooperate with authorities as they investigate.

“These type of incidents happen far too often in our world today and we are saddened to see it happen so close to our local businesses,” Mitchell’s Owner Todd Smith said in the news release.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the Fort Wayne Police Department at 260-427-1201, Crime Stoppers at 260-436-7867, or use the anonymous P3 tips app.

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