North Liberty man faces murder charge in Coral Ridge Mall shooting

CORALVILLE — A man identifying himself as a Coral Ridge Mall security worker faces a murder charge in connection with the shooting death of a 20-year-old woman inside the mall.

Alexander M. Kozak, 22, of North Liberty, is accused of shooting a 20-year-old woman multiple times near the food court around 7:30 p.m. He is expected to make an initial appearance in Johnson County District Court later today.

The name of the woman has not yet been released.

The shooting happened around 7:30 p.m. Friday, prompting authorities to initiate lockdown procedures in individual stores throughout the store. According to the Coral Ridge Mall website, the mall is closed until further notice.

Kozak, who identifies himself on his Facebook page as a security worker at the mall, was taken into custody without incident along Interstate 80 eastbound near Walcott, officials said. He faces a charge of first-degree murder. He has been returned to Johnson County and is awaiting an initial appearance in Johnson County District Court.

One witness said it appeared the victim was not chosen at random.

'It was apparent that somehow they knew each other, he definitely knew her,' said Jeff Carew, of Tiffin, who was within about 10 feet of the shooting, which occurred near the information kiosk near the mall's food court.

Carew said he had his back to the kiosk, talking to his girlfriend, when he heard three to four shots ring out.

After pushing his girlfriend to the ground, Carew turned and saw the aftermath of the shooting – a woman lying the ground and a man, carrying a semiautomatic handgun, briskly walking away.

'I heard the shots, as I looked up her knees buckled,' he said. 'It was crowded, there was a lot of people ... There were people screaming and yelling and going everywhere.'

Carew said he attempted to provide first aid to the victim, who he said was suffering from bullet wounds to the neck and back.

'There was blood everywhere, she was in bad shape,' he said, adding that someone who identified himself as a medic provided additional aid, while calling for towels and plastic from the nearby Mellow Mushroom pizza shop.

Carew said he watched the shooter walk briskly west toward the Forever 21 clothing store and then take off on a jog down the mall's corridor.

Janice Anderson, of Wayland, said she was in Younkers when store employees informed customers that the store was going into lockdown due to a shooting in the food court.

'They told everyone mainly to stay away from the doors and windows,' she said, adding that the store was on lockdown for about 90 minutes.

The shooting prompted a significant law enforcement response with dozens of officers from Coralville, Iowa City and University of Iowa police departments, Johnson County Sheriff's Office, Iowa State Patrol and Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation responding. Officers were stationed at the mall entrances late into the night.

Kevin Walling, of Coralville, said he was approaching the mall minutes before the shooting. near the theater entrance when people began rushing out of the mall's south food court entrance.

'They were running,' said Walling, who described the crowd as 'hysterical. Like in shock.'

A statement issued late Friday by the Iowa Department of Public Safety, citing a fluid situation, declined to say what charges the suspect faces, but the department did confirm one person had died in the gunfire.

The department said investigators believe the suspect acted alone.

'There is no reason to believe there is any threat of further danger related to the situation at Coral Ridge Mall,' the statement said.

Cortney Lewis, 26, of Coralville, said he was in the Finish Line shoe store when he heard what sounded like gunshots emanating from the food court.

'It was crazy, very nerve-wracking,' he said after fleeing the mall.

Dan Porter, 26, was waiting outside the mall for word from his girlfriend, who works at the Forever 21 woman apparel store. She sent him text messages to say she was OK, but he had not heard from her since.

'It's just a very scary situation,' Porter said.

Johnson County Attorney Janet Lyness was on the scene hours after the shooting and left without providing additional information.

'I have nothing more to add,' Lyness said, as she entered a vehicle and left the scene.

The mall, at 1451 Coral Ridge Ave. south of Interstate 80, includes 125 retail stores and a 10-plex movie theater, according to its website.

Witnesses reported hearing shots about 7:30 p.m., less than two hours before the mall was set to close at 9 p.m.

According to a study released in 2014, the FBI determined there were 160 'active shooter' incidents — when a shooter opens fire on people in a populated area such as a mall or other public space — in the United States between 2000 and 2013.

Those numbers are on the rise, the FBI said: In the first seven years of the study, there were 6.4 shootings a year. But in the past seven years there have been 16.4 shootings a year.

In those, 486 people were killed, and 557 were wounded, not including the shooters.

Mitchell Schmidt, Lee Hermiston and Lily Abromeit of The Gazette and Chris Earl and Mark Carlson of KCRG-TV9 contributed to this report. Live blogging and digital coverage by Clare Murphy and Stephen Schmidt.