STOCKTON, Calif. — Friends of 17-year-old Anthony Graves gathered outside the Sherwood Mall Thursday around a makeshift memorial, remembering their friend who was shot and killed the night before.
On Wednesday, March 11, police were called to Sherwood for reports of a shooting inside the mall. Upon arrival, officers found two teenagers suffering from gunshot wounds. Graves, of Stockton, died a short time later.
"He was our brother...he always had our back. And, that's the only person we really had," Damareey Johnson, one of his friends, said.
Zion Mann, another friend of Grave's, said "he could make a terrible situation good."
Caution tape still surrounded the scene when the mall opened on Thursday morning. As security made its rounds in and outside the mall, Stockton Police detectives walked the floor trying to gather any information they could leading to the identity of the shooter. During its investigation, a large group of children caused a disturbance and confronted a security guard, prompting Sherwood to close for the remainder of Thursday.
Stockton police officials said, "not in recent times can we remember a homicide occurring inside the mall."
"And what we've learned so far, is that there was some type of fight in the food court between a group of people," Officer Joseph Silva, spokesperson for Stockton Police Department, said.
As of Thursday evening, there have been no arrests. Mall patron Jesus Navarro were were ready to shop when the doors opened Thursday morning. When he heard about the shooting, he says the message to him was clear.
"This place could be dangerous at night," Navarro said.
Sherwood Mall management wanted to reassure its customers that they have plenty of security and that it will remain status quo.
"What happened was out of our control and it was really unfortunate," Pat Dobson, Sherwood Mall manager, said. "But, we're prepared in our industry for when they happen because unfortunately they do happen."
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