SWEETWATER, Fla. - The chief of Sweetwater police said Monday that a report of a shooting over the weekend at Dolphin Mall a hoax.
Now investigators are trying to figure out how it all started.
People were running through the halls of Dolphin Mall on Saturday night in a panic after police responded to a call about a shooting inside the mall.
"We thought we were going to die. We just wanted to find our parents," one girl said.
The report of an active shooter inside the mall sent customers scrambling for the exits.
"Everybody was running all different directions. Everybody was scared,” Donna Jex said.
Law enforcement and emergency crews from all over the area rushed to the scene. But now, Sweetwater's police chief said it was all for naught.
"There is nothing that would support anything other than a hoax at this point," Chief Placido Diaz said. "There were no shots, there were no casings, no shooter, nobody injured, nothing found that would indicate that there was any shooting whatsoever within the facility."
Nonetheless, Diaz said he believes first responders and mall employees handled the situation flawlessly.
"It was textbook -- handled by the book and it couldn't have gone off any better," Diaz said. "I have to thank the management of Dolphin Mall for being participants and actively cooperating with us and working with us as public partners."
Investigators said they are now pouring over a lot of surveillance video, trying to figure out what sparked all of the panic.
"These guys stepped up to the plate, and I have a wonderful group of guys working out there (who are) dedicated to the public," Diaz said.
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