At least three people were injured during a violent stabbing at Mall of America in Minnesota on Sunday night.

The New York Post reports that police are describing the incident as a botched robbery attempt that began in the men’s fitting room at Macy’s. In a news conference, police reportedly said that the suspect had attempted to burglarize two customers while they were outside the fitting room, modeling the clothes they were trying on for friends.

When the two victims confronted the thief, the suspect allegedly pulled a knife, stabbing one repeatedly and the other in the neck. The suspect was also injured.

The violent incident reportedly took place near where children were waiting in line to visit Santa.

“My daughter could see people lying on the ground who had been stabbed,” Kim Schwieters told the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Another witness reportedly told Schwieters that he had seen the suspect behaving erratically before the stabbing.

“He saw the man walking through before, talking to himself, really really loudly talking to himself,” Schwieters said. “Kind of drew attention to himself.”

Bloomington Police Chief Jeff Potts said in the news conference that friends of the victims subdued the suspect until police arrived, and that the victims suffered non-life-threatening injuries. The suspect was also taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

The suspect and the victims have not yet been identified. This is a developing story, and CrimeOnline will provide an update when more information is available.

[Feature image: Associated Press]