(WICHITA, Kan.) — The shooting at Burlington Coat Factory in East Wichita started over a question about soda. Wichita Deputy Chief Tom Stolz says an employee asked a man whether he was going to pay for a soda he drank in the store. That's when Stolz says the suspect fired a shot at the employee. He was about six to eight feet away and missed the employee.
"I was scared, really scared. Thank God no one got hurt," said Burlington Coat Factory employee Lynette Banks. Banks was on break when the shooting happened inside the store. It started around 10:30 Monday morning near East Kellogg and Rock Road.
Stolz says about twenty people were inside the store. After the shot was fired, Stolz says the suspect also pointed the gun at the crowd. An employee says an announcement was made over the intercom about the shooting. That's when customers and employees ran for safety. Some ran into the parking lot, while others barricaded themselves in the break room.
