On Friday, Feb. 9 at 9:30 p.m., a stolen Honda security vehicle drove through Fayette Mall. The vehicle entered through the middle wing on the rear side of the mall. Fayette Mall posted a statement on Facebook stating the vehicle had caused damage to the doors and portions of the interior. No injuries were reported since the mall was closed at the time; however, mall officials estimate the damage to be somewhere between $10,000 and $1 million.
In an interview with LEX 18, H&M employee Jayzun Bradshaw said, “I got off work and I had received several text messages from people telling me that a vehicle had crashed through the entrance like right at H&M there,” Bradshaw said. “I was honestly in disbelief, but I looked it up and saw everything for myself. I was kind of in shock because it was, what, like 30 minutes to an hour after I got off work. Had I been just a little bit late getting out of there, I would have come right out those doors.”
The mall opened as usual that Saturday, but customers were asked to avoid that entrance.
According to the Lexington Police Department, at around 6:30 p.m. that Friday night, police say that a stolen vehicle had been reported, and officers were dispatched to the Transit Center on East Vine Street. When officers tried to pull the driver over, the driver fled and the officers did not pursue. Dispatchers say that several people were nearly hit after the driver took off at a high speed. Officers later located the car when it had been driven into the mall.
The driver has been identified by Lexington Police as Shaheem Anderson, 30, who has been arrested and charged with receiving stolen property (auto over $10,000), burglary third degree, two counts of fleeing and evading police first degree (motor vehicle), reckless driving and possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine).
After the arrest, Anderson was transported to a local hospital for narcotics consumption and was booked into the Fayette County Detention Center.
On Feb. 13, Anderson was arraigned and appeared in court, where he pleaded not guilty to all charges. A bond was set at $31,000.
An article by WKYT reveals how, according to court records, Anderson was on probation from a 2021 assault case where he had pleaded guilty to assault under extreme emotional disturbance. Anderson received a suspended five-year prison sentence under the requirement that he possessed no firearms or weapons. The judge also ordered that he live in a sober living house at the time, and documents show that Anderson had graduated from the recovery program in December 2023.
Anderson is due to be back in court on Feb. 22.