three people are dead, including the gunman. >> reporter: i'm surae chinn at the scene of the columbia mall shooting. i'll have the latest. >> reporter: and i'll have the latest from witnesses about what it was like inside the mall. >>> people are ordered to shelter in place. >> where do we hide? >> in the stockroom. we hid in the back rom and locked the door. . >>> hello. i'm bruce johnson. thank you for joining us. howard county police released the names of the young man and woman killed inside columbia mall. name of the dead shooter and his motive, still being held by investigators. we've got team coverage for you tonight from columbia mall. let's begin with surae chinn. you've got a couple of names for us, surae? >> reporter: i do, bruce. police just releasing these names, just a short time ago, 21-year-old brianna benlolo of college park, maryland. and the second victim, 25-year- old tyler johnson of ellicott city. now, we can tell you that brianna's facebook page, seen here, she is listed as a first assistant manager at zumiez, a skateboard shop. she worked there since 2012, and her h

i want to thank the folks of the columbia mall for being so cooperative in working with us. folks have been here before to train with the mall security folks. they know how to react to incidents like this, unfortunately, and everyone did exactly what they were trained to do. i also want to give a very large thanks to our community at large. there were a lot of people here at the columbia mall saturday morning at 11:15. this was a very scary incident. the chief is going to walk through the details, again. this did happen at a store on the second floor that is above the food court. so there was a lot of discussion about the food court. there were a lot of people very close to where this happened. and i just want to thank everyone for their patience. folks sheltering in place, being vigila vigilant, doing what their instincts told them to do. this is a very, very large crime scene. people are being incredibly patient in working with us. we are an incredibly safe community in howard county, and here in columbia, and we're an incredibly strong, caring community. and the outpouring

now columbia mall remains a major crime scene tonight. it is closed and police are not saying when shoppers can return to collect strollers, purchases, and personal belongings that were abandoned when thousands fled the mall. we continue our team coverage tonight beginning with an interview from a store employee who witnessed the shootings from inside the skate boarding score. he says the gunman emerged from the back of the store with a shotgun. >> he shot her. took one shot and at that point, i got down below the other side of the counter and ten seconds later, i heard the second gun shot. i scrambled out of the store on my hands and knees right by the male employee who was down on the ground still alive. >> and of course, we now know both employees died in today's shooting. the two victims bodies were found inside the store. the dead gunman was discovered just outside the door. and there were more people who saw what happened and had every reason to fear for their lives. >> the shooter looked straight at me from the second floor level an

the columbia mall has a hotline for people interested. 4107303302. this is for customers of the mall who left belongings in the common area of the mall. for tenants of the mall, the business owners mall, expect to receive communication from mall management later this morning about when you will be able to get in your stores to begin addressing the needs that you have in your stores. we are also working at both of those opportunities when people come back in. we're working to have grief counselors on site. we know this is a traumatic event in people's lives. for those that witnessed some of this or didn't witness it but were still involved at the mall when this happened, it can be pretty traumatic. we are working to have some initial grief counselling services available as people come in to pick up their property and again later in the day as we start letting tenants in. when the mall does reopen, we'll insure we have a strong police presence here so people feel comfortable and safe shopping here. we understand as i said before, the columbia mall is a

columbia mall will reopen tomorrow afternoon. police say darion aguilar shot two people and then himself. detectives are trying to figure out what connection, if any, aguilar has with the victims. officers served a search warrant at his home. among the items seized, a journal expressing unhappiness in his life. tonight, we are hearing from a young man who went to school with aguilar. tom is outside the columbia mall with what that friend had to say. he and another friend we communicated with absolutely could not believe this. columbia mall is set to open tomorrow afternoon at 1:00. tonight, it is still a crime scene. officers are still on scene and they are trying to figure out what the motive was in this shooting. tonight, howard county police say, at this point, they have not been able to establish any relationship between the shooter and the two victims. >> there is still speculation that there is somehow some romantic involvement in this thing. we have not been able to establish that. i am not sure where that information is c

erica gonzalez, we're awaiting a press conference by howard county police set to begin outside the columbia mall any minute now. police just tweeted that the mall will reopen tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. this is a little more than 48 hours after the deadly shooting. tonight we're learning more about the gunman, 19-year-old darion aguilar of college park. police say he walked in and opened fire in the zumiez store. police believe aguillar turned the gun on himself. two federal law enforcement officials say the incident appears to be domestic in nature but howard county police have not confirmed that. david culver has more about the gunman but we begin first with derrick ward outside the columbia mall. derrick? >> reporter: as you said, there will be a news briefing from howard county officials. if it happens during the course of my report, we'll break away and bring you that news conference. if you take a look behind me, there's less of a police presence than their has been for quite a while. there is a command vehicle here. i can tell you at the other entrance there was commercial cleaning vehicles. th

columbia mall. and i saw a lot of police cars heading out that way, a lot of detective units. he time i didn't know what was going on. i can tell you it's a major mall. there are a lot of people that live in that area. i personally shop at that mall at least once a month. it's a very nice mall. there is a cross section of people from baltimore and washington, d.c. columbia is in the center of baltimore and d.c. it's only about three mile, three to four miles away from the airport. >> police are calling this an active shooting situation. we don't know what is happening at the moment. whether there are suspects under arrest or victims. >> that's right. us just after that, and i saw the police cars heading that way. uniform and plain clothes police cars. i thought it was a police chase. usually if you see that many police cars it's a chase. but i found out about the shooting at the mall. that mall is protected, though. it's important that the viewers understand it's right dead center between d.c. and baltimore and there is a lot of police out there. it's actually considered hartfo

chaos in the mall. >> we have an active shooter at the columbia mall, last scene in the food court. >a crowded mall run for their lives as a gunman opens fire. >> as soon as i ran into sears, shots kept going and going and going and didn't stop. >> three people killed including the gunman. this morning we're live on the scene as investigators search for clues in yet another deadly rampage. >>> promise of terror. with just 11 days to go to the start of the winter games, a terror groupmi

columbia. >> reporter: this investigation is still ongoing. we still don't know the motive in this case, why the gunman walked into the mall here this morning and committed this murder-suicide. reporting live from columbia, darcy spencer, news4. >>> dozens of emergency called flooded the howard county 911 system shortly after the shooting occurred. dispatchers had more than 40 calls on hold at one point as they tried to understand what was going on. police moved in on the mall and shortly after the first calls came in, they radioed police units with a description of the suspect and the casualties. >> all units at the mall, we have an update, a male between 18 and 25, a white t-shirt, khaki pants, last seen with a shotgun, possible suspenders on his khaki pants. we have a victim on the upper level. a male and female were shot. >> the chaos didn't die down for several hours as police searched the mall for any possible victims and any other possible weapons. we will continue to monitor developments on the columbia mall shooting is. visit nbcwashington.com for the latest updates and tune in to news4today starting at 6:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. >>>

it's a crime scene at the mall in columbia, maryland, where three people were found dead inside the mallfter a shooting taking place at about 11:15 eastern time earlier today. police in the last hour and a half said that among the dead is believed to be the single shooter in this incident. unclear whether it was a domestic dispute or random act of violence here, but nonetheless, there are a lot of people in the shopping mall, and in the middle of the day, at this shopping mall in columbia, maryland. a lot of frightened people, and many of the employees and the patrons there just simply took cover, and went to safe places in storage closets and in stores as soon as they heard the gunshots fired at about 11:15 eastern time today. the county executive with howard county, ken ullmyou ulman is wi now. he was at the police chief brief an hour and a half ago commemorating this has ban cooperative effort by so many agencies on the local and state levels, and, ken if you're with me and able to hear me, do you know whether or not this mall has since been secured, about an hour and a half ago, poli

management has announced that columbia mall will reopen tomorrow at 1:00. personal who left property in the mall's common areas were allowed to pick up their belongings today at the pnc building. emergency situation that is related to property left inside the mall encouraged to call the mall's public safety office. the number is on your screen. stay with abc 7 news and wjla.com as we follow the latest on this shooting. look for breaking news updates on our social media platforms, facebook and twitter. we will turn to the weather. we have one school delay already to pass along for tomorrow. frederick county public schools in virginia will operate on a two-hour delay on monday. i imagine as we go into tuesday we will probably hear a lot of delays and possible cancellations. >> absolutely. it will be because of the extreme windchill factors on the way come tuesday morning. we will have windchill that will make it feel about 10 to 20 degrees colder than that. right at freezing at dulles international airport. 31 and fredericksburg. if you break in the clouds --

columbia mall's south entrance tonight. memorial to slain workers, brianna benlolo and tyler johnson, grows by the hour. the mall reopened for business at 1:00 this afternoon. but no one is hiding the grief. >> i wanted to get away from work. i wanted to sit down in silence. >> inside, congressman elijah cummings consoled two shattered mall visitors. >> we have to not let the violence stop us from doing the things we normally do. >> just before the 1:00 p.m. reopening, hundreds of employees entered together after a meeting inside a theater, most were solemn and carrying flowers. inside, zumiez, the store where benlolo and johnson were senselessly gunned down is now boarded wop a simple white memorial wall acknowledging the tragedy. >> we wanted to be here to show our respects to the victims. but also to let the community know that the mall is open and we're going to go back about our lives. >> get back to normal. >> for it

message voiced by so many here to the entire community, and it is this, come on back to the mall in columbia, and show your support. just before the mall reopened, a brief ceremony at the memorial outside of the front entrance in columbia with the two zumiez's employees who were killed saturday. officials brought flowers and asked for a moment of silence. >> we need to e reflect on our role to see what we can do on our part to make our communities and society a better place. thank you. >> reporter: with that, they walked into the mall which opened for business and the fir first time since saturday's fatal shooting at zumiez's, there is a memorial at the food court, and a second memorial book for people to write their condolences. ken ullman and his wife ordered lunch today. >> we are back to business here, and our patrons are back to business. >> and two were hugged by elijah cummings of baltimore when they said they were friends with the murder victim tyler johnson. and governor martin o'malley said, we are all in this together. >> i wanted to be here, i suppose as a symbol of the fact that

tonight inside columbia mall, people through flowers and the fountain as part of the memorial set up for the victims of saturday's shooting. outside the mall, there is another memorial. many stopped to pay their respects. proud.re just so called him at loving man. she says saturday was a nightmare. >> it became clearer that things were zoning in on her family. -- our family. >> police are struggling to find any possible connection between the shooter and blake high school graduate darion aguilar shooter and the victims. one they are looking at is how close one of the victims lived near him. if you drive a two minutes, you come to the home in the same never good where benlolo lived. >> it has been hard. >> although the mall reopened, zumiez store is boarded up. people need more time. >> i will be antsy about walking in. i will be looking at people differently. some people that work there quit because of that. at halfe flag is flying staff outside columbia mall tonight. there will be a memorial service here visual here -- vigil on thursday at 5:00 p.m. story we arebig watching is the re

meantime columbia mall is set to reopen tuesday. >> all the people rushing out running for their lives yesterday, if they left belongings behind, they can pick up at the pnc bank today. we've got a hotline on our website, nbcwashington.com. 4107303302. we tweeted that number out. thanks for joining us everybody. >> samsung and h.h. gregg are teaming up to get your home ready for the big game. get close to all the action and save 1500 dollars on samsung's ultra high definition 4k led tv. plus, samsung 60-inch led tvs start at only $999. and samsung 55-inch led tvs start at just $799. get to h.h. gregg now, your samsung headquarters for the big game. see it all at h.h. gregg.com. >>> from nbc news in washington, the world's longest running television program, this is "meet the press" with david gregory. >> and good sunday morning. big week coming up here in washington. one of those moment where is the president has a huge audience and a chance to speak directly to that audience with his state of the union address. my big question through all of this is how much political clout does he ac

>> yes, you know, this is a columbia mall. it's sort of a quiet time. not a very busy area, not a very large mall, either. there had been reports of shootings, and the police pointed out there had been three people found dead on the second level of the mall near the food court. and one of the victims was found near ammunition and the police confirmed that this person was, they believe the shooter, and there was no more threat here. however, a lot of scared people who said that they heard these pop sounds and started rushing out of the mall in an one directional run and described a panic scene, a very emotional one for many people who started breaking down and describing the scenes. you're walking with your kids or your loved ones. and one men you're with them in the scene where there are reports of gunfire and you can't find them. a lot of people are very emotional. >> sure, sure, understandably. you said that this is a small that you frequent. can you give us an example of how close mall is. i grew up in a smaller town, and the mall was the police to go

who live in that area, the last thing they would think of something like this happening at the mall in columbiaa mall i froekted as a -- frequented as a kid. it's certainly a place people to this day think of a very safe, close knit community there. you still heard from a number of the shopters and the -- shoppers and the employees that we've had a chance to talk to. even though nothing like this is expected to happen there, they all i know tipgttively seemed to know what to do. try and find a safe place within the stores, within the mall. the police chief under scored that he applauds that many knew to take shelter in place. tell us more about what you're learning there outside this mall. >> reporter: well, fred, as you said people are obviously very surprised at what happened at this place. and one of our producers here said he was on his way to come and have lunch here all the time. he tells us that's there's usually a police car parked between the j.c. penny and the sears. there are often police officers inside the mall. so it's -- yes, it is very safe. as you mentioned people did shelter i

. >> at this hour, people are gathering outside of the columbia mall. seven, you caner see the vigil for the young victims of the mall shooting saturday as investigators in howard county continue to release bits of information about the accused shooter. stephen tschida is at the mall tonight with the latest. is just getting underway. behind me, a very large crowd has gathered. some of these people knew the two young victims, but many are employees of the mall. >> just very sad. >> at the memorial, the flowers half-a-day, but from a new the pain is agonizingly fresh. >> very nice, always had a smile on her face. >> amanda works at the mall and do the two victims. still are consumed with loss, grief, and confusion. >> it's really bizarre, just out of the blue. >> investigators are still looking for what motivated darien aguilar. he emerged from the skate shop and opened fire on the store employees with a shotgun. benlolo andng johnson, he turned the weapon on himself. investigators say they believe that al gore larded that he had psychological problems bu

i want to thank the folks of the columbia mall for being so cooperative and working with us. here before to train with the mall security folks. they know how to react to incidents like this, unfortunately. and everyone did exactly what they were trained to do. i also want to have -- give a very large thanks to our community at large. there were a lot of people here at the columbia mall saturday morning at 11:15. this was a very scary incident. the chief is going to walk through the details again. this did happen at a store on the second floor that is above the food court. so there was a lot of discussion about the food court. there were a lot of people very close to where this happened. and i just want to thank everyone for their patience. folks sheltering a place, being vigilant, doing what their instincts told them to do. this is a very, very large crime scene. people are being incredibly patient and working with us. we are an incredibly safe community in howard county and here in columbia. and we're an incredibly strong, caring community. the outpouring of love and compassi

the columbia mall is still a crime scene tonight after a gunman hoopened fire inside. this is a live look inside the mall, at least three people were shot and killed outside the zumez store. we have just learned the identities of the dead, they're a 29-year-old and 25-year-old tyler johnson, they were both employees at that zumez store, the gunman was armed with -- dorsey spencer spoke to witnesses who ran after hearing the shots. erica gonzalez has new details. we begin with derek ward, he's got the latest on the investigation that's under way. howard county police are working on it. derek? >> reporter: indeed they are, doreen, take a look at the shopping center parking lot behind me, aside from the flashing lights, there doesn't seem to be anything remarkable about it. we have learned more about the victims and not about the shooter and why u police say th incident centered around a store on the upper level of the mall, a clothing store called zumeys. >> the two deceased, there was an adult male and an adult female. they were in their 20s. they were both employees of

will remain that way -- darion aguilar is still closed and will remain that way. >> reporter: columbia mall is open today, but no one is hiding the grief for the two victims, mourners shedding tears laying flowers at a public memorial at the mall's south entrance. >> i just felt like i needed to come out here. i wanted to get away from work, sit down in see silence and just think about the victims, think about tyler. >> reporter: inside congress nan elijah cummings consoled two shattered mall visitors. cummings bought a sandwich and talked about moving forward. >> we've got to not let the violence stop us us from doing the things we normally do. >> reporter: hundreds of employees entered together. after a meeting inside a theater most were solemn carrying flowers. inside zumies, the store where johnson and benlolo were senselessly gunned down is simply boarded up with a white memorial wall acknowledging the tragedy and thanking first responders and community for support. at the fountain a quiet area for employees to drop flowers in the water and spine a condolence book. -- and sign a condol

mall. police also saying one of the dead is believed to be the suspected shooter. >> it happened in columbia, maryland. we are still trying to figure out where in the mall the shooting actually took place. police are in the mall right now to help clear people out safely. that mall is now on lockdown. joining us by phone we are going to talk to some people throughout this newscast to let you know what's going on. we are going to go to ted williams who has information about it, as well. >> let's talk to him. ted, thank you so much for being with us. you are a former police detective. you are an attorney and you're from the area. really, you could tell us so much and give us context. this is a mall in a neighborhood you would never expect it to happen. that's what people say when they are involved in these situations. you never think it can happen where you are. tell us what your impression is of what's happening so far. >> jamie, i'm very familiar with columbia, maryland. it's a very nice community. you would certainly never expect to have a shooting at that mall. quite naturally, we never exp

at columbia mall, i am tom roussey. ken allman says there will be two most -- to memorial sites at the mall today. one will be near the starbucks and sears in the second site will be at the center or by lord and taylor. >> it seems like the freezing temperatures will not leave us alone. thought you're going to get another break, another arctic blast is heading this way. >> you thought this was bad? it is about to get worse. air of the coldest season, and arctic blast, expected to rival the polar plunge felt this month. with wind chills between 30 and 60 below zero. freezing rain, sleet, and snow expected as far south as texas. a winter storm watch is issued for all of the gulf coast states tomorrow. are forcing parts of chicago to close a. blinding snow is in north dakota. treacherous conditions outside detroit caused a massive 33 car pileup. now, the races on to clear the snow before turns to ice. >> it will be a hard freeze. it will will matter what you put on, saul, whatever, it will move. salt, whatever, it will not

good.® >>> a shooting in a mall in columbia, maryland. let's bring back in rod wheeler. standing to the extent which their own law enforcement assistants are allowed to carry or not? >> that's right. actually, more and more malls across the united states are allowing security officers to carry weapons. in this particular mall, i'm not sure. i go to this mall regularly. i don't live far from here. i don't recall seeing the security officers carry weapons, but i can tell you that the howard county police department always has at least two to four officers stationed in the mall. i think that added to the quick response of the police department this morning, but i can tell you after situations like this, after the shooting that we had at the pentagon city mall a couple of years ago here in washington, more and more malls are allowing officers to carry weapons. >> one of the other things they want to look at as they go through each and every one of these 200 plus stores is to find anybody else who might be injured, even incidentally. one individual was taken to the hospital ha

reporter: college park in prince george's county and burtonsville in montgomery county, and the columbia mall is in howard county, and three pivot points in darion aguilar's life on the day of the murderous attack on the mall. 4704 hollywood road, the aguilar home in college park. 5:15 saturday morning, the police say that aguilar tells his mother that he is leaving to walk to the his job at the dunkin' donuts, and aguilar works at the dun kkin' donuts about a mile from the home on the other side of the beltway near the ikea store. aguilar did not show up for work that morning, and instead, he ended up here in burtonsville, and why did he come to burtonsville? did he keep his gun stashed somewhere around here? we don't know for sure. but we do know this, later that morning he took a cab. the destination -- the mall. 10:15 saturday morning. that is the time that police say that aguilar arrived at the mall. he hung out there for about an hour before he began the shooting spree. now, he could is opened fire anywhere in the mall, but he chose the zumiez store for his mu murder scene. zumiez is a

. >> new developments in the investigation into columbia mall shooter, darion aguilar. they are trying to make sense that the stunning tragedy that claimed the lives of two store clerks before aguilar killed himself. scott broom is following the case for us from aguilar's home in college park. scott, tell us more. >> reporter: well, i tell you tonight the mystery of what made aguilar do it remains frustratingly out of reach for investigators. despite some tantalizing common denominators that remain. at the aguilar home today in college park, two detectives visit and find no one to talk to. but howard county police communicating on twitter say now 19-year-old shooter, darion aguilar's financial records are one way they are trying to reconstruct his activities. they are not finished scouring aguilar's computer and the cell phone. so far, there remains no evidence that aguilar knew either victim. 19-year-old tyler johnson of ellicott city, maryland, or 21- year-old single mom of college park. but curious parallels in the lives of benlolo and aguilar add to the mystery. the

three people killed in the mall in columbia there. ., 20 miles south of baltimore. so it is a place that is populated by shoppers from that entire area. it happened about 11:15 in the morning. we know that there were shots fired. good news, as the police confirm, they have the situation under control and there are no other shooters or any further incidents to be frightened of at this point. what they're doing right now is going from store to store, to try and make sure that anybody who may out of fear have barricaded themselves as they should inside of a store to take cover. they're able to get out and get them outside and then, of course, ask them what they may have seen oh. we do have an eyewitness we're going to speak to in a moment. right now i did want to bring in democratic congressman, frank pallone, who agreed to talk to us about another big story, the chris christie saga. instead, i'll ask you to letourneau leblond your ear of expertise and opinion. this is happening all over this country in soft targets, even in your own stat

again, we understand as we said before, the columbia mall is a very unique place in the county. it's not just an economic institution. it's really a place of community. so we understand that. and we're working closely with the mall officials to allow them to reopen as quickly as we can. so that's all the new information i have to share. i will take a few questions. >> chief, what more can you tell us about the shooter? where he's originally from. >> we're still tracking all that down. he's a 19-year-old young man, lived in college park. to this point we don't see any type of significant record that would cause us concern to lead us to wonder why this might have happened. i don't know if he's a student or not. >> did his parents say he showed any science of violence? >> i don't know that. >> chief, how far -- >> i'm sorry? >> [ inaudible ]. >> those were the explosive devices we found in the backpack. we had that concern when we originally found the shooter. he still had a lot of ammunition on his person. we were concerned he might have a booby trap there. he did not have any boob

a reverse track was placed on aguilar's phone and located in the area of the columbia mall. he opened fire inside that mall saturday and killed two people for before turning the gun on himself. at the live desk, scott mcfarlane. >>> right now at 5:00, a major construction project at the heart of the district. >> it will cause major traffic tie-ups for years. >> reporter: how about a four year long traffic construction project and impacts for that entire length of time. coming up. >> reporter: that's the iii street. imagine it covered over and huge buildings on top of it. and the traffic impact it will cause. coming up. >>> it was the state of the union interview that upstaged the president. a congressman threatens a reporter with physical violence. now, an "abc news" crew was confronting him to get answers. >> do you regret what took place? >> reporter: a rare look at an >>> fast forward through the headlines. manhunt on the way after an employee was shot at an electron electronics store. it's not clear what led up to the shooting but police say the gun marsh ran off after it

. >> at is 1:15, they received a number of calls of shots fired at the columbia mall. we had officers quickly get into the area, and we were able to identify three victims at the columbia mall. one of those victims appears to be the shooter. we do not have an identity for the shooter yet. we do not have a motive for the shooting. we're still trying to secure the mall to make sure again that there is nobody else injured, and then we're getting our investigators into that crime scene to start doing their work which will enable me to answer some of those many questions that you have that frankly i just can't answer right now because i don't have the information. >> that was police chief bill mcmahon. just before he came to speak to the press county executive kennalmakenallman spoke. let's hear what he had to say. >> we have three confirmed fatalities. we want to send our thoughts and prayers to the family members and loved ones of the victims. all the shoppers, all those who work here at the mall this has been a tremendously trying few hours. and we've seen a lot of patie

many of them are clearly mall employees and this gives you a feel for the outpouring in the columbia community in the wake of this terrible tragedy. immediately saturday friends of the young viims here took to facebook and twitter to share their pain and this gathering you're witnessing right now is one result. the now familiar faces of the victims, 21-year-old single mom briana benlolo and 19-year-old tyler johnson killed by a suicidal, angry, disillusioned 19-year-old darion aguilar whose journal entries indicated he was hiding mental illness from his family and was planning an attack, but was not specific. the expressions young people are making can be seen on the boarded up walls of the zumies skateboard shop inside the mall, appeals to stop the killing and needless death. outside the mall today visitors are still stunned by the shotgun attack by aguilar here. >> you can't walk past the memorial without having tears. it's really sad. >> how do you protect yourself from something like this? you don't anticipate that. i just feel so sorry for her. >> i'm still kind of down, but i h

though, howard county police are taking a new approach to generate clues in that shooting at the columbia mall. there is still no clear motive, but some things have been ruled out. erika gonzalez is at the mall now with the latest on the investigation. erika? >> reporter: hey, vance. one thing that investigators have told us is that aguilar used to come here to the mall. he was seen smoking cigarettes. another thing that they are really looking into is the cell phone that was found on his person after the shooting and also a computer that was confiscated from his home. darion aguilar. did you know him? did you have any contact with him? that's what howard county police want to know. tonight this flyer is circulating throughout columbia mall. the day of the shooting, police say aguilar came here in a cab. here is something new. a source at barwood cab company tells news4 one of its drivers called police after the shooting, said he had taken a, quote, weird looking guy to the mall. we've not heard from howard county police to confirm or deny this. but the other thing to note is aguilar was picke

columbia mall is set to reopen tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. seth has more. >> police have now put a name to the man. >> darion aguilar is the shooter. ande took a cab to the mall walked around for about an hour before approaching a skateboarding shop, where he used a shotgun to kill two employees. andear-old mother brianna tyler. >> no known relationship between our shooter and are victims. >> police efforts were hampered by worries that the shooter had explosives. witnessednever anything like this in my life. >> survivors are still reliving the terrifying experience. >> it was so close. you knew that there were gunshots. >> people started running and screaming and then i heard it again. boom, boom, boom. shoppersthinking by may have saved lives. >> we put everyone in the back room and lock the doors until the swat team came. >> we crouched on top of the so that we would not be seen in the dressing room. >> family friends told abc news they are just as surprised as anyone. >> darion was a good kid. i do not know what happened. he just got a pro

the mall in columbia let our cameras take a look just a little while ago. there's a memorial to the victims of the shooting. in about 90 minutes, the mall will reopen to customers. it's been a busy crime scene since saturday morning when a shooting left three people dead, including the gunman. news4s angie goff joins us with how this story is unfolding on social media. angie? >> reporter: this is a story we've watched unfold online, and new this hour, you talked about it, but the photos of the memorial set up for the victims inside the mall, tweeting them out. also the howard county police department sharing this photo. it shows a memorial wall replaces the front of where the zumiez store is. they tweeted for people to come to the reopening at the mall at 1:00, so about an hour and a half, and notice th the #hocounited, and we're seeing a lot of that after the county executive tweeted out this. even if you aren't a howard county resident, show your support by using the hashtag, and he said thank you for joining us in the healing process, and those who knew t

typically, cylinder in shape >>> the investigation into the columbia mall shooting continues. and tonight, police are passing out this flier to stores at the mall looking for more information about the shooter. it says darion aguilar frequented the mall and hang out outside there and smoke in small groups. also today, the search for answers led detectives back to the shooter's home. >> i'm scott broom outside the home of columbia mall shooter, darion aguilar. at the aguilar home in college park, two detectives visit and find no one to talk to. but howard county police communicating on twitter say now 19-year-old shooter, darion aguilar's financial records are one way they are trying to reconstruct his activities, leading up to the shotgun attack on the columbia mall saturday. police report they are not finished yet scouring aguilar's computer and the cell phone recovered from his body. so far, there remains no evidence that aguilar knew either victim, 19-year-old tyler johnson or 21-year-old single mom, brianna benlolo. curious parallels in the lives of benlolo and aguilar lea

i want to thank the folks of the columbia mall for being so cooperative in working with us. our folks have been here before to train with the mall security folks. they know how to react to incidents like this unfortunately. everyone did exactly what they were trained to do. i also want to give a very large thanks to our community at large. there were a lot of people here they columbia mall saturday morning at 11:15. this was a very scary incident. the chief is going to walk through the details again. this did happen at a store on the second floor that is above the food court. so there was a lot of discussion about the food court. there was a lot of people very close to where this happened. i just want to thank everyone for their patience, folks sheltering in place, being vigilant, doing what their instincts told them to do. this is a very, very large crime scene. people are being incredibly patient in working with us. we are an incredibly safe community in howard county in columbia and we're an incredibly strong and caring community and the outpouring of love and compassion t

montgomery county, pat collins, news4. >> and tomorrow morning a moment of silence inside of the columbia mall to honor those two victims and the mall plans to hand out white label lapel ribbons to the customers when they arrive. brianna benlolo and tyler johnson worked at the zumiez's skate shop, and we have more information on that memorial fund set up for them on our w website nbcwashington.com. >> part of mass avenue is gone after what is being called a washout. a pipe burst eroding the pavement, blocking off traffic between 34th and n streets in southeast d.c. in fort pond park. and we haved a dumb tuss out there with a new perspective. >> yes. and you can see here we can hear can jackhammer, and this is massive washout here on massachusetts avenue, and the guys are out here doing the work, but there are other issues here to the talk about. the gas company is out here and we have a gas leak to be fixed and then the water crews can go on to the road and and eight-inch main broke in the road and that is what caused this and the road could be closed for 7 to 10 days. >> reporter: massachuset

killed in today's mall shooting were employees at a skate shop located on the upper level of the columbia mall. they've been identified as 25-year-old tyler johnson and 21-year-old bree anna of college park. the shooter has not been identified at this point. the mall has been cleared and remains closed at this hour. we want to give you a like look over the scene right now. howard county police found a shotgun and am in addition beside the suspected shooter. we have eyewitness accounts. we're going to start with the chief who has been on the scene all day. >> when this happened the mall was packed. hundreds if not thousands of people were inside. at this point many of them were sheltering in place. at this point they have all been removed from the mall but the entirety of the mall remains a crime scene even though the focus is one store in the upper level. >> this cell phone video shows the frantic moments as a group of mall pay trons and workers some with hands in the air make tony: safety. >> like many -- it to safety. >> it was a big noise. >> it was so close. you knew there were gunshots. >

. >>> inside the mind of the columbia mall killer the 19- year-old planned the mall murders and needed he needed help with mental issues but never told his family. we also have a bert timeline of the hour -- better timeline of the hours leading top his rampage. >> reporter: police finally released part of his journal they say he had written sporadically and knew he had mental issues. he mentioned using marijuana, said he was ready to die and had a general hatred of others. he mentions killing people but does not mention victims or specific person. he also apologizes for what he is planning to do. police gave us a timeline of the morning just before his shoot rail passenger he walked out of his college park home 5:15 a.m., set to open dunkin donuts on u.s. 1 where he had been working. instead he took a cab and arrived columbia mall 10:15 a.m., hung out at the food court for an hour before going to the skate shop. he went into a dressing room, assembled his shotgun and fired wrap [ audio difficulty ] >> children's store. >> i have 40 calls holding, trying to read through at the same time

the mall in columbia, maryland is scheduled to reopen in about an hour. this is just two days after a shootinger killed two people in one of the stores there, and then committed suicide. police are still trying to determine what triggered this violent outburst by a 19-year- old, darian aguilar of college park. scott broom is live outside the mall where again, there will be memorial services in there. scott? >> reporter: well we have just witnessed hundreds of employees streaming out of the amc theater here, each of them with flowers in their hands, reentering the mall to prepare to get back to business. but it certainly will not be business as usual. the store where brianna and tyler johnson died has been boarded up with a simple white memorial wall, acknowledging the tragedy that happened here saturday. one storefront over, locked in time evidence of the mayhem. people scattered as the shooting broke out. >> we are now here to prepare the hearts of our retailers and our community. >> reporter: mall owner, general gross properties, has created a memorial

we're going to continue to follow the columbia mall tragedy very closely. we'll have the latest information during the 7:00 p.m. newscast, plus you can log on to our website, wusa9.com for full coverage 24 hours a day. >>> breaking news now. a 10-year-old girl has been rescued after she fell down a 30-foot well. that's in pasadena, maryland. sky 9 out over the scene near high point elementary. rescue teams from the anne arundel county fire department pulled that girl out and only took a couple minutes to do that. flew to johns hopkins. no life threatening injuries. >>> virginia state senator, creigh deeds opens up on 60 minutes telling that heart wrenching story about his son's attack and then suicide. peggy fox tells us, deeds is hoping his son's tragedy will lead to changes in the mental health system. >> gus was a great kid. perfect son. you know, it's clear the system failed. it's clear that failed gus. it killed gus. >> in his first on camera interview about what happened to his son, gus, senator creigh deeds talked to scott pelley of 60 minutes. >> if

three confirmed dead at a mall in columbia, maryland. ce. 11:15, howard county police got a call that active shooting was taking place. law enforcement has descended. we understand that the shooter is among the dead there. there was one body found near ammunition, gun, but no id. law enforcement still on the scene there. we have with us now mike ollers who is a cnn senior producer. give us an idea what you've been able to see. we've heard from law enforcement in various ways, either from the twitter account or through phone calls as well, that right now, they believe that the mall may be secure. what can you tell us? >> first of all, police just told us minutes ago that there will be a formal briefing at around 1:15. they have very little information here on the scene that they're ready to release now. when i arrived, there was still a good number of people arriving. lights and sirens on the scene, getting out of their vehicles, putting on body armor and carrying assault weapon. i talked to a young couple in the mall. they say they were o

have, howard county police released the name of the gunmen in yesterday's shooting at the columbia malle is identified as 19-year-old darion marcus aguilar of college park. this comes hours

. >>> we've got new information tonight on the columbia mall shooter. later this afternoon howard county police said in his writings over a one year period darion aguilar apologized to his family for what he was planning to do. he mentioned killing people but did not say who or how. he expressed a general hatred for others and said that he thinks he needs mental health help. he also said he was ready to and wanted to die. >> reporter: i'm scott broom at columbia mall where today howard county investigators said they believe the shooter in saturday's attack, darion aguilar, used the dressing room of the zumies skateboard shop to assemble his shotgun. meanwhile recordings of communications and first responders documented the aftermath. >> we have an active short at the columbia ma'am, last heard 10 shots coming from -- mall, last heard 10 shots fromming from the children's store. >> i -- coming from the children's store. between 18 and 25, white t- shirt, khaki pants, last seen with a shotgun, possible suspenders on his khaki pants. >> 10-42, i'm in the s

. >> we have an active shooter at the columbia mall, last scene in the food court. >> shoppers inside a crowded mall run for their lives as a gunman opens fire. >> as soon as i ran into sears, shots kept going and going and going and didn't stop. >> three people killed including the gunman. this morning we're live on the scene as investigators search for clues in yet another deadly rampage. >>> promise of terror. with just 11 days to go to the start of the winter games, a terror group promises further violence as putin's office lashes out against the west. >>> puppy love. the blind man saved by his guide dog after falling onto the subway tracks in new york city adds a new friend to the family than tox the kindness of strangers. we're there exclusively today, sunday, january 26, 2014. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today," with lester holt and erica hill live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >>> welcome to "today" on this sunday morning. i'm erica hill. >> i'm lester holt alongside dylan and sadly another case of a gunman opening fire with thousands of people nearby. typical

. >>> about 11:15 this morning, our 911 center received a call for shots fired at the columbia mall.e had officers get into the area, we were able to identify three victims at an upper level store in the columbia mall. one of those pictures appears to be a shooter. >> the columbia mall in maryland reopened today for the first time since a gunman walked in and shot and killed two mall employees. a string of shootings across the united states, oklahoma nathan dahm the piers morgan constitutional right to bear arms without infringement. anyone would be allowed to bear arms without a license. explain to me why you've come up with this act, why my name is involved. >> the act would allow people to carry a firearm without a permit. there's 35 states that already allow that here in america. in fact, five states are constitutional carry states that you don't have to have a permit to carry or conceal. with this bill, i thought, well, a lot of times with different bills, it's ironic the way names are come up with, we have the patriot act, the patient affordable care act. it's proven to be unaf

. >>> now at 11, the search for a motive in the columbia mall shooting. tonight we'll report why the killer's journal could hold answers into what provoked that attack. >>> new video from chopper 4 over the scene of a fire at a maryland home. what helped fuel the flames. >>> and new pictures are just in as passengers from national airport were forced to slide down the emergency chute just minutes after touching down in chicago. >> "news4 at 11" starts now. >> first tonight, the weather. temperatures will feel 50 degrees colder tomorrow than they were today. a windchill advisory is already in effect. this is all part of the same system that is impacting a lot of the country from whiteout conditions in the midwest to a state of emergency in new orleans. and the rare sight of snowplows in south carolina. >> we have team coverage tonight. we begin with doug. man, it is rough out there, doug. >> it is rough out there for a lot of the country. and we're going to see places that are going to be seeing snow and ice where they normally don't see it. and that is al

overnight bomb squad worked to secure the deadly scene at this mall in columbia, maryland. ging in robots to disable two crude devices on a gunman who killed two mall employees before turning the gun on himself. >> kids are hiding in the bathroom in the upper level in sears. hearing shots. >> police are scouring surveillance to make sense of the crime. >> there were a lot of people here at the columbia mall saturday morning at 11:15. this was a scary incident. >>. >> reporter: a domestic argument is the leading theory behind the killing of the two employees who worked at is a skate shop. 21-year-old mother brianna benlolo, and 24-year-old tyler johnson. the shooting, just outside washington on saturday, sparked terror for hundreds of shoppers and store employees. >> everybody ducked to the ground. i heard more than ten shots. >> people started running and screaming. and i heard boom, boom, boom. >> they were loud. >> for many, saving the children became the number one priority. >> i grabbed every kid that i could see and ran into sears to keep them safe. >> it's horrifying.

, at the mall at columbia in maryland. ou're looking at aerial pictures right now of the parking lots because every now and then you see a steady stream of people being allowed to exit the mall. those people, employees and patrons who were inside the mall at the shooting that police are saying right now there is not yet completely secured the scene of that mall. there continue to be some people inside, because they found themselves in secure areas. they tried to seek shelter exactly where they were. so police are methodically now going through, interviewing people to make sure that they indeed have no other active shooters on the scene, but police saying very confidentially during the last hour that they believe that this was carried out by the hands of a single shooter, and the single shooter is among the three that are dead. another press briefing will be coming from howard county police at 4:00 eastern time. an hour and a half from now. >>> meantime, our justice correspondent evan perez, crime and justice correspondent e

mall. we've been covering this story out of columbia, maryland. three people now confirmed dead after gunfire erupted at the mall of columbia. this happened around 11:00 this morning. so we're a couple hours removed from it, but authorities say they do believe the suspected gunman is among the dead. police do not have information yet on the identity or motive, but they're confident this was a single shooter. there are no other shooters in the mall, they say. meantime, authorities are still trying to secure that mall. >> our s.w.a.t. teams getting a lot of support at the local, state and federal level, frankly, are going through as we are holding this press conference, they are inside continuing to clear that mall to make sure there are no more victims. >> no more victims. police do say however they believe other people may still be in the mall because when the shooting started they just secured themselves and hid so police are still going through and trying to clear that mall. one person who was at the mall at the time joins me on the line now. he'