Shooting site sits just north of downtown, across from a main hospital
A shooting at a post office in Des Moines, Iowa, left multiple people injured on Thursday, authorities said. Des Moines police said in a statement that the suspect has been detained. Those two elements — the initial report of injuries and the police statement — were the entirety of the official account released on Thursday.
The shooting occurred at the main post office, which sits just north of downtown Des Moines and across the street from one of the city’s main hospitals. No information has been released about whether any of the injured were taken to the hospital.
Des Moines police said the suspect has been detained. Officials have not released the suspect’s name or any other identifying information, and have not said where the detention took place.
Authorities have also not said how many people were injured, whether anyone was in critical condition, or how the shooting unfolded. The identities of the people who were hurt have not been released.
The account has not set out a sequence of events, said what preceded the shooting, or indicated whether anyone other than the detained person was involved. No charges have been announced, and Des Moines police have not announced a search for additional suspects.
With the suspect in custody, the immediate question of whether the person police identified was still at large has been answered. The questions that remain are the number of people injured, the severity of their injuries and the circumstances of the shooting.
Until authorities publish more detail, the public account of Thursday’s shooting rests on three elements: multiple people injured at a Des Moines post office, a suspect in police custody, and a scene directly across the street from one of the city’s main hospitals.