A 23-year-old man was shot in the chest late Tuesday night inside a theater at Marcus Cinema in Oakdale, according to police.
Police responded to the scene at 5677 Hadley Avenue North just after 10 p.m. on a report of a shooting inside theater 17. The suspect reportedly fled on foot and remains at large. Police said they don’t believe the shooting “was a random act.” They did not release any additional information on the suspect or a possible motive.
The victim, from Hugo, underwent surgery at Regions Hospital. He remains hospitalized but is expected to recover.
According to Crime Watch Minneapolis, police recovered two casings from the scene.
Angie Wright was watching the new Elvis movie in theater 1 at the time of the shooting. Police officers with assault weapons entered her theater and began shouting for everyone to leave.
“I’m thinking this is it, this is how I go,” she said, at first not realizing that the two men were police officers. She said many people in the theater froze and didn’t know what to do.
Wright told Alpha News that the theater was packed for Marcus Cinema’s $5-movie promotion.
Wright ran out of the theater with her friend and two girls they didn’t know drove them to a nearby bar to meet Wright’s husband. He recorded video of the scene on his way to pick up his wife.
Wright estimated that there were close to 100 officers from multiple jurisdictions at the scene and observed helicopters searching for the shooter. Police were searching people and stopping cars.
“It was mass chaos,” she said.
The incident was the last straw for Wright.
“You can’t even go and see a movie in Minnesota on a Tuesday night,” she said. “We have to have a new governor. I pray that we get a new governor.”
“Whatever we are doing is not working. If you can just walk into a theater on a Tuesday night and shoot someone, it’s not working,” she added.
Wright also mentioned that she was nearly the victim of a carjacking just a few months ago in Woodbury. She was leaving an event when a man jumped out from behind a bush and followed her to her car. Two men in the parking lot scared the man off.
“I’ve changed my habits. I don’t go out late grocery shopping anymore,” Wright said. “I don’t think I will ever go to a late movie again.”
Liz Collin contributed to this report.
Anthony Gockowski
Anthony Gockowski is Editor-in-Chief of Alpha News. He previously worked as an editor for The Minnesota Sun and Campus Reform, and wrote for the Daily Caller.
