Police identify suspect accused of stabbing teen at mall

By KFSN Staff

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    FRESNO, California (KFSN) — Fresno police say they have arrested a gang member after a boy was stabbed inside Fashion Fair Mall on Saturday evening.

Authorities identified the suspect as 27-year-old Prophet Hillard during a news conference on Monday.

Officials say just before 6:30 on Saturday, officers responded to reports of a fight in the mall. When the officers arrived, they found two boys – a 16-year-old and a 17-year-old – who were involved.

One of them had a stab wound to his armpit, and the other was hit in the back of his head by an unknown object.

Both were taken to the hospital.

Surveillance video showed the two juveniles in a verbal argument with the suspect, which turned physical.

Officers tracked down Hillard in a bathroom within the mall. A knife was also recovered.

On Monday, Chief Paco Balderrama and Mayor Jerry Dyer promised to look at potentially changing policies at the mall.

“I happen to believe that if you’re a known gang member and you’re simply there to cause problems, then you shouldn’t be let into the mall. I believe that, and I think that should be a store policy. I also believe that if you engage in any type of disturbance, then you should be asked to leave,” Balderrama said.

Chief Balderrama says he’s going to request that the mall contract three officers from the city of Fresno during peak hours and on weekends.

Police say the mall was not shut down and is safe for visitors. Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer tweeted about the incident, saying he was ‘extremely disturbed’ by the increase in violence at the mall and that he would be working with Fresno Police Chief Paco Balderrama and Council Member Tyler Maxwell, who represents the area, to develop a safety plan for the mall.

“People should be able to enjoy their shopping experience and not have to worry about these types of incidents,” he wrote.

Action News spoke with Maxwell, who represents the Fashion Fair area.

“We’re going to do everything within our power to address the increase in violence at Fashion Fair Mall. This next week, I’ll be meeting with the chief, mayor and mall management to discuss next steps,” he said.

Shoppers can expect an increased police presence at the mall in the coming days, including detectives with the Multi Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium, or MAGEC. Fashion Fair Mall has been the site of a number of violent incidents in the last two years.

One of the more high-profile incidents was a gang-related gunfight in April 2021 that sent shoppers fleeing in panic.

Action News dug into the data and found that when it comes to actual crimes reported, Fashion Fair is averaging a little more than one crime per day since January 1 this year.

That includes nine weapons offenses.

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