A man who had just purchased something at a suburban shopping mall in New Orleans on Christmas Eve was shot and killed at close range and a suspect is in custody, police said.

The shooting occurred around 4:21 p.m., less than two hours before Oakwood Center mall in Gretna was scheduled to close for Christmas, said Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand.

The victim has been identified as 27-year-old James Vaughn. Vaughn had just bought something from the Foot Locker when 25-year-old Gary M. Francois walked up and began shooting.

Francois was recorded on surveillance camera waiting outside the Foot Locker, and with gun drawn, walks up to Vaughn.

Vaughn had just turned from the cash register when the Francois walked to within three or four feet of him and shot him at least three times. No one else was injured.

“Obviously, based on witness accounts, he walked in with purpose of shooting this particular individual,” Normand said when asked in a press conference on Wednesday if Vaughn was targeted.

Afterwards, Francois ran out of the Foot Locker into the adjacent store, and then ran out to the parking lot while cops chased after him. One mall patron, possibly an off-duty cop, joined in the initial chase. Francois was later apprehended near the intersection of Cherry Blossom and Wright Avenue.

Witnesses told WWL-TV that the shooting may have been connected to a pair of sneakers.


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