A 34-year-old man from San Bernardino County wanted in connection with a deadly shooting at a local mall earlier this month was taken into custody in Northern California, officials announced Tuesday.
Authorities with the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department said in a news release that the violence unfolded on Oct. 6 inside the Victorville Galleria, located at 14560 Palmdale Road.
According to detectives, Victorville resident Harold Phillips Jr. and the victim, 51-year-old Guy Taylor, also from Victorville, were involved in a physical altercation when the shooting occurred.
Deputies responded to reports of “shots fired inside the mall” just before 3:30 p.m. and located the 51-year-old who was suffering from at least one gunshot wound.
“Deputies attempted lifesaving measures until medical personnel arrived, however, Taylor was pronounced dead at the scene,” the release stated.
Details are limited and it’s unclear exactly how the altercation occurred or what prompted the fight, but Phillips fled the scene before deputies arrived.
San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Specialized Investigation Division assumed the case, quickly identified the 34-year-old as a suspect and issued an arrest warrant for murder.
A little more than two weeks later, on Oct. 22, agents with the United States Marshals Service located Phillips in San Jose and arrested him without incident. He was booked at the Santa Clara County Jail and later transported to the West Valley Detention Center where he remains in custody without bail.
Anyone with any information about this investigation is urged to contact SBSD’s Homicide Detail at 909-890-4904. Those wishing to remain anonymous can contact the WeTip Hotline at 800-782-7463 or leave tips online at www.wetip.com
