31-year-old arrested after threatening to ‘shoot up’ Southlake Mall on Black Friday

MORROW, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - A 31-year-old man faces multiple charges after threatening to “shoot up the place” at Southlake Mall while people shopped on Black Friday.

According to officials, Morrow police officers responded to a “trouble unknown” disturbance at Southlake Mall around 2:53 p.m. Upon arrival, officers discovered Darius Dixon, “who may have been having a mental health crisis,” making threats to “shoot the place up” while acting as if he was armed.

Officers at the upper entrance to Macy’s inside the mall made contact with Dixon. A Morrow officer made numerous orders for Dixon to show his hands while he attempted to reach for something in his waistband. “A Clayton County police officer smacked the box out of Dixon’s hands as a Morrow police officer deployed his taser.”

Dixon was eventually taken into custody by police.

Officials tell Atlanta News First that “due to the loud pops of the taser deployments, customers inside and near Macy’s believed that someone was shooting and fled the store. Customers were assured that they were safe and re-entered the store.”

Officials add that Dixon “spat in a Morrow officer’s face” while he was being interviewed about the incident.

“Miscommunication with Clayton County E-911 resulted in a “shots fired” call where multiple units from neighboring agencies responded. Morrow PD advised dispatch that no shots had been fired, and was only requesting more officers for crowd control, but this information did not get to the responding officers who flooded the mall, making the situation appear worse than it was,” Morrow police officials told Atlanta News First.

No injuries were reported.

Dixon was transported to the Clayton County Jail. He faces multiple charges including terroristic threats toward mall security officers, simple battery on a law enforcement officer, obstruction, and resisting arrest charges.

There is no additional information. Stay with Atlanta News First for updates as they come into our newsroom.