Northridge Fashion Center Shooting Reports False, Police Say

NORTHRIDGE, CA — A man with a hammer created a scare at the Northridge Fashion Center Tuesday, prompting false reports of a mass shooting at the popular mall, the Los Angeles Police Department confirmed.

As the rumor spread through the mall, some panicked shoppers fled and police flooded the scene to find that no shooting had taken place.

"People thought it was a mass shooting but it was actually just someone with a hammer," said Los Angeles Police Department Senior Administrative Clerk Redina Puentes.

As of 1:15 p.m., authorities did not have additional information about any arrests linked to the incident nor further information about the hammer-wielding man.

The panic comes just days after a Guman in Texas opened fire at a mall killing 9 people, including three children.

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