A tranquil summer afternoon at the upscale Fashion Island mall in Newport Beach disintegrated into violence Tuesday, with a woman killed after a botched robbery attempt.
At least two men accosted the 69-year-old woman and her husband close to the Barnes & Noble bookstore at the mall and attempted to rob them, according to a law enforcement source. Authorities said that shots were fired, although no one was struck by gunfire.
Sgt. Steven Oberon of the Newport Beach Police Department said in a Tuesday news conference that the couple were walking at Fashion Island when they were approached by two male suspects who attempted to rob them.
A struggle ensued, and the woman was then dragged into a parking lot and subsequently was run over by the suspects’ white Toyota Camry. Oberon said the woman’s husband was believed to be uninjured.
Police pursued the suspects following the incident, a chase that took them into Los Angeles County. During the pursuit, the getaway driver allegedly let at least one accomplice out before he and another man sped on. They eventually jumped out of the car in South Gate, fleeing on foot, according to police and to video of the chase shown on multiple local TV news stations.
The victims were not immediately identified.
News footage showed one bare-chested man being taken into custody minutes after he jumped from the driver’s side of the car.
The shooting occurred just after 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, at what is known as a usually peaceful shopping center, which sits on a bluff above the ocean, in the wealthy coastal community.
The Newport Beach Fire Department said it found a person dead in the parking lot adjacent the bookstore.
Authorities reported that the Camry reached speeds of up to 110 miles an hour as it sped north. A television news helicopter captured video of the car speeding into the left shoulder of Interstate 105 and at one point grazing the concrete center median.
Later, aerial footage showed two men jumping from the car and running into a neighborhood around Harding Avenue and Hoover Avenue in South Gate.
Authorities notified nearby residents at around 4 p.m. to avoid the shopping plaza as they investigated the incident. Police were seen on-site guiding the public to safety, and helicopters were flying overhead.
A woman who declined to give her name but was shopping in the area on Monday described the situation as a “hullabaloo,” noting that she was from Los Angeles and was thankful that police responded quickly.
A young man who asked not to be identified said he was at CUCINA enoteca in Fashion Island when the incident occurred.
“About 20 people were running and screaming, ‘Someone’s shooting!’ They locked us in the restaurant,” he said.
City News Service contributed to this report. Winton and Rainey areTimes staff writers. Nguyen and Hoffman are staff writers for the Daily Pilot, a sister publication of The Times.