NORFOLK, Va. — Three stores at the MacArthur Center are closing early this holiday season, leaving some questioning if it's because of safety concerns.
MacArthur Center spokesperson Karen Husselbee said Fink's Jewelry and J Crew are closing one hour early at 8 p.m. instead of 9 p.m. Loft is also closing an hour earlier.
An employee at one of the stores said it's in response to last month's shooting. While, an employee at another store, said although they started closing early one month ago – it's not because of the shooting.
In an e-mail, Husselbee said it's "not the case" that stores are closing early because of safety concerns.
A month ago on Oct. 14, MacArthur Center went on lock-down after gunmen shot two people inside the mall.
Police said it stemmed from a confrontation. A 56-year-old woman who was not involved was hurt.
Another shopper, Nicholas Owen was there.
"Right as I was about to look over the edge of the railing, I just heard pop, pop, pop, pop – about six to eight shots or something like that," Owen said.
"My first reaction was to just run into the store that was right next to me."
Owen was back at the mall on Wednesday.
He said despite the incident, he's not too worried about mall safety.
"I could see that there's a lot more police officers in there. Before, there was just security," Owen said.
Another shopper, Brittany Boyce said she understands why stores might choose to close early as crime is a problem around the holiday season.
"I don't find anything wrong with that," Boyce said of the early hours.
She said she's never felt any concern for her safety while at MacArthur Center or any other mall.
October's incident was the second time there was a shooting at MacArthur Center this year.
"As long as they have security and police patrolling, I don't think it should be a problem," Boyce said.
"They never had a problem like that before so as long as they keep it safe and secure, I wouldn't mind shopping here."
According to MacArthur's holiday hours: The mall is open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Saturday. On Sundays, it closes at 6 p.m.
On Dec. 22, the mall will close at 8 p.m. On Nov. 29, Dec. 20, Dec. 21, and Dec. 23, the mall will close at 10 p.m.
The mall is closed on Nov. 28 and Dec. 25.
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