South Florida Man Arrested in Relation to Shooting at the Palm Beach Gardens Mall

MIAMI - Kamarcio Mitchell, 28, of West Palm Beach, had his initial appearance this morning before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in West Palm Beach on a criminal complaint charging him with unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. Mitchell’s arrest, on Feb. 16, was the result of a joint response by local, state, and federal law enforcement partners following a shooting that occurred at the Palm Beach Gardens Mall (The Gardens Mall) on Valentine’s Day.

According to allegations in the criminal complaint, on Feb. 14, Mitchell was at The Gardens Mall with a firearm. Surveillance video captured Mitchell on the second level of The Gardens Mall near a retail store. Mitchell followed another male onto the escalator and was manipulating an object under his shirt. Mitchell was then fired upon by the other male and shot. Mitchell fled the mall to the parking lot, leaving a trail of blood. A loaded firearm that had been disassembled was found in the parking lot by police, near the blood trail. Mitchell was later treated for his injury at a local hospital where he admitted to being shot. The investigation by law enforcement determined that the firearm found in The Gardens Mall parking lot was a loaded handgun that had previously travelled in interstate commerce.

Mitchell is a convicted felon and based upon his prior criminal history is charged in the criminal complaint as an Armed Career Criminal.  If convicted, Mitchell faces a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 15 years to a maximum sentence of life.

The United States has sought the pretrial detention of Mitchell.  A detention hearing has been scheduled before the West Palm Beach Duty Magistrate Judge on Feb. 27. An arraignment hearing is scheduled for March 5.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of FBI, Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Christopher A. Robinson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Division, U.S. Marshal Gadyaces S. Serralta of the U.S. Marshals Service, Chief Clinton Shannon of the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department, and Sheriff Ric Bradshaw of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest and charges.

The Office of State Attorney Dave Aronberg for the 15^th Judicial Circuit – Palm Beach County provided invaluable assistance. Assistant United States Attorney John McMillan is prosecuting the case.

This prosecution is a part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program.  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through the PSN program a broad spectrum of law enforcement and community stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs to reduce violence crime and gun violence, and to make our local neighborhoods safer for everyone.

A criminal complaint contains allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-8057-BER. 

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