Police baffled  by gunshot that disrupted a Sunday at Valdosta Mall

By T.S. Carter

VALDOSTA, Lowndes County, Georgia – The source of a gunshot that sent Valdosta Mall shoppers “running everywhere”Sunday afternoon is a mystery to police, though they suspect the firearm discharge occurred accidentally

 

An off-duty Valdosta police officer shopping with his family heard the gunshot at 2:30 p.m. He ran in the direction from which he thought the shot had come.

 

As the officer neared where the shot originated, fleeing shoppers pointed to a 17-year-old male, but police later ruled out the teenager as the person who discharged a weapon.

 

The off-duty officer initially grabbed the youngster, Marcus Darius Melvin (17) of Valdosta, who police said appeared “as though he was going to try to flee.”

 

Within minutes, numerous Valdosta police officers and Lowndes County deputies converged on the mall.

 

Based on evidence at the scene, officers concluded that the gunshot was possibly an accidental discharge by someone carrying a gun in his or her pants.  Officers found one spent shell casing, small pieces of clothing, and damage to the floor which was in a straight downward trajectory.

 

Police let Marcus Darius Melvin leave after deciding that none of the evidence pointed at him.

 

But that was not the end of Melvin’s involvement with police at the mall Sunday afternoon. His return there with another teen led mall security to call police.

 

He and 17-year-old Quincy Keshawn Williams of Waycross were arrested outside the mall on charges of resisting arrest. Police said the teens tried to pull away from officers who sought to detain them. They also refused to give their names, police said.

 

The discovery of a firearm further increased police suspicions, according to a press release from police.

 

“When officers first observed Melvin and Williams, they were standing by a trailer,” the release reported. “Officers found a firearm under the trailer.”

 

A mall security officer told police that he had seen Williams pull the gun from his jacket and hide it under the trailer as police officers pulled up, according to the press release.

 

Police charged Melvin and Williams with two counts of misdemeanor obstruction of a law enforcement officer. Williams is facing additional misdemeanor charges of possession of a firearm by a person under 18, tampering with evidence, and possession of a tobacco product by a person under 18.

 

The caliber of the firearm police found under the trailer did not match the caliber of the shell casing found inside the mall.  Determining the source of the mall gunshot is going to take more investigation, police said.

 

Valdosta Police Chief Leslie Manahan praised the off-duty officer’s quick reaction to the sound of gunfire. “The response of our off-duty officer who was shopping with his family was incredible,” Manahan said.

 

“He left his family and went to where the gunshot was heard coming from. When witnesses pointed out a person they felt was involved, he took immediate action.”

 

The chief said that if Melvin was not involved in the discharge of the firearm, he should have just cooperated with officers.