Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said the groups knew each other and had had a conflict from earlier this month that came to a head when they ran into each other Saturday night.
“So again, we see guns in the hands of angry individuals leading to a tragic outcome,” Schierbaum said, adding that some individuals who were involved are known to Atlanta police investigators. He did not clarify in what capacity police have become familiar with those involved nor whether those known to them were suspects.
Police asked the public to submit any photos or videos of the incident, including any cellphone, doorbell or vehicle dash camera footage. They did not release any information about whether they have identified any potential suspects.
Investigators believe those involved were between the ages of 12 and 21, police said.
The deadly shooting, which came just two days after Thanksgiving and amid the peak holiday shopping season, is the latest in a string of shootings at or near Atlantic Station just this year. The property also includes a residential area and is currently the site of a Cirque Du Soleil show and an ice skating rink.
In October, two women were shot 10 days apart in similar incidents after being caught in the crossfire between feuding groups.
In the most recent case, a woman was shot
On Oct. 18, a 30-year-old woman was shot three times while inside her SUV, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported. The woman believed people in two other cars were shooting at each other shortly before midnight and she was caught in the middle. Investigators found several shell casings at the scene, at the intersection of 17th and State streets.
Ten days earlier, another woman was injured after leaving the Bowlero bowling alley when she heard gunshots, an incident report stated. She ran inside the Hobnob Tavern on 18th Street and realized she had been shot in the foot.
In August, a man was seriously injured by an accidental gunshot inside an apartment, police said at the time. And in January, a woman was injured as she walked past two groups of people who were arguing outside Bowlero, police said. Someone in the group opened fire and struck the woman.
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