A chaotic scene unfolded Sunday at Wiregrass Commons Mall in Dothan, Alabama, where a shooting broke out inside the shopping center — an incident that investigators now believe may be connected to a recent homicide in Pike County.
According to law enforcement officials, the man injured in the mall shooting is the suspect wanted in the killing of 23-year-old Bobby Lee David Mircle Lucas, who was fatally shot during an unregulated gathering northeast of Troy last week.
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Dothan Police Lieutenant Scott Owens confirmed that the mall shooting erupted from a dispute between individuals with a prior history of conflict. “After several rounds were fired in both directions inside Wiregrass Commons, one person was struck with gunfire,” Owens said. He noted that multiple individuals were armed during the exchange, but no arrests were immediately made at the scene.
The injured man — identified as the suspect in the Pike County murder — sustained a head wound and was transported for medical treatment. His current condition has not been disclosed. Authorities say a warrant had already been issued for his arrest following Lucas’s death.
The mall shooting triggered widespread panic among shoppers and store employees, many of whom barricaded themselves inside stores until police declared the area safe.
Investigators from multiple counties are now working together to determine whether Sunday’s violence was an act of retaliation tied to the earlier homicide.
In the wake of these incidents, Pike County Sheriff Russell Thomas renewed calls for stricter oversight of unregulated party venues, noting that Lucas’s death occurred during a large, unsupervised gathering of nearly 300 people.
Authorities continue to investigate both cases as communities across southeastern Alabama grapple with the recent surge of violent confrontations.