Lunchtime Links: Black Friday Mania Sweeps The Nation
Long lines everywhere, brawls erupt, and shots fired in today’s Black Friday edition of Lunchtime Links…
ONE PERSON SHOT: KMIZ reports on a shooting that happened outside of Missouri’s Columbia Mall in the parking lot just before midnight Thursday:
Investigators told ABC 17 News a 19-year-old person sustained life-threatening injuries after the shooting in the parking lot of the mall. Police the entirety of the incident took place in a car they were searching.
Police officers are still interviewing witnesses as of 1:30 a.m. Friday. They say they do not believe they are looking for anybody and have everyone they need to talk to.
Officers said they could not confirm whether the shooting was accidental or deliberate.
The NY Daily News notes the mall was open until midnight Thursday so shoppers could take advantage of pre-Black Friday deals.
MEANWHILE, IN ALABAMA: The Rivergate Galleria mall was shut down Thursday night after a brawl erupted on Thursday night between two women on the second floor:
Hoover police and firefighters responded to the shopping center after 11 p.m. on at least one fight in a store on the mall’s second floor. Reports of gunfire quickly spread on social media, but authorities said reports of shots fired were not confirmed and no one was shot. Video circulating on Facebook shows one of the fights, which was between two girls.
Hoover Fire paramedics treated one victim on the scene for minor injuries sustained in a fight. No one was transported to the hospital. Officers said the fights were not over sales, but of a personal nature.
AL.com also reports that the mall had planned on being open until midnight but closed about 40 minutes early due to the incident.
Here’s video from the immediate aftermath:
FAKE EMPLOYEE TRICKERY? Houston’s ABC13 has a disturbing story about Best Buy and Walmart vests allegedly being offered to shoppers in an effort to “trick” stores into letting them in early:
But others are offering a way to skip the line at stores by posing as employees. A check of Twitter and social media shows people selling Walmart employee vest and Best Buy employee shirts promising an easy in and a way to bypass the line. Someone was offering $110 for Best Buy employee shirts, while someone else was offering $50 for a Walmart employee vest.
Here’s the most popular tweet on vest selling, which the user later said was “a joke.”
https://twitter.com/OverlyLiked/status/932711470554669056
Mashable points out, however, that others aren’t joking.
LONG LINES EVERYWHERE: The Daily Mail UK has photos and videos galore of stores around the country and the huge crowds that waited in front of them to get in.
Stay safe out there, y’all!