Shots fired in the parking lot of CherryVale Mall earlier tonight caused police to put the facility on lockdown with customers and employees still inside.

According to WIFR, the shots fired in the parking lot struck glass on the exterior of the mall between Bergners and JCPenney. The station said police estimated there were 600 people inside the mall, but no one was hurt.

CherryVale Mall notified the public about the incident via its Facebook page just after 7 p.m. with the following message:

Due to an incident that happened in the parking lot earlier this evening, the mall is currently closed. We are working closely with local authorities as they continue their investigation. We will continue to update our website and Facebook page as more information is available.

According to WIFR, the incident started with an altercation that started in the mall that was followed by a drive-by shooting in the parking lot.

The mall was then put on lockdown for officers to check stores for the suspects, who are believed to have fled the scene.

According to WREX, customers were then evacuated until the mall was clear just before 10 p.m.

Winnebago County Sheriff Gary Caruana described the suspects during an interview with WREX.

The mall plans to reopen at 10 a.m. Saturday. An updated message on the CherryVale Mall Facebook page reads:

CherryVale Mall will remain closed this evening and will reopen tomorrow (10/1) at 10am.

We'll continue to update this story as we get additional information.

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