BLOOMINGTON, MN – A 24-year-old man is in custody after police say a 5-year-old child was thrown or pushed from a third-floor balcony at the Mall of America Friday morning.
The child was taken to Children’s Minnesota Hospital in Minneapolis with what police called “significant injuries” but is expected to recover.
Police arrested 24-year-old Emmanuel Deshawn Aranda on a preliminary charge of Attempted Homicide. Witnesses told police Aranda took off running just after he pushed the child.
So far Bloomington Police Chief Jeff Potts says officers do not believe there is a relationship between the suspect and the child or the child’s family, and they are looking into what might have led to the incident. “Whether it was an interaction up on the floor or why that is, we at this point in time are actively working on that piece of the case,” he said.
