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BRAINTREE, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Police are still on the hunt for the suspect in a shooting at the South Shore Plaza in Braintree Saturday that killed one man from Dorchester.
The shooting occurred around 3 p.m. in the afternoon on the first floor of the shopping center, according to Braintree Police. The unknown male suspect reportedly approached the victim, pulled out a firearm, and shot the victim. Braintree Deputy Police Chief Tim Cohoon said the suspect then immediately fled the mall.
Following the shooting, the victim was transported to a Boston area hospital with life-threatening injuries. The victim's condition was described as "grave" at the time. On Monday, the Norfolk County District Attorney's office pronounced the victim, 26 year-old Dijoun C. Beasley of Dorchester, dead from his injuries.
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Braintree Police said in a statement the incident did not appear to be random, but that there was no further immediate threat to the area.
After the shooting, the South Shore Plaza was placed on lockdown and police issued a shelter in place order for the surrounding neighborhood. Trey Dallas was shopping nearby when he heard gunshots ring out.
"I didn't really know that it was a shooting at first, I thought it was a fight," Dallas said. "But then the whole food court was running around and people were screaming 'there's a shooting.' I just ran to the back and I saw people in the back crying."
Nicole Vianna is an employee of a store inside of the South Shore Plaza, and she said when she heard reports of the shooting, she and her co-workers put all the customers in the back of the store and hid for about 30 minutes before the police arrived to escort them out of the mall.
"It's awful," she said. "It's so sad to see that this happens in our world."
WBZ's Mike Macklin reports.
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