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Natick Crowne Plaza Hotel Evacuated After Shot Fired In Lobby

NATICK (CBS) – A hotel in Natick was evacuated overnight after a gunshot was fired in the lobby.

Natick shooting
A gunman reaches through the doors at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Natick as a man runs away (Video from Natick Police)

A man who just checked into the Crowne Plaza on Route 9 told investigators he was walking into the front entrance of the hotel around 2:40 a.m. Tuesday when police say "persons unknown to him" followed him inside and fired a shot at him. No one was hurt.

Surveillance video released by Natick Police shows the victim running into the doors of the hotel, then stumbling to the ground in the lobby after he forces the doors open. The suspect points a gun through the sliding doors and fires a shot at the victim as he runs across the lobby.

The suspect and the others ran off, but police did not know if they were still in the hotel, so they evacuated it.

"At present the subject who fired the weapon is unknown to us, but it is presently believed he is not from the direct area," Natick Police said. "The victim sustained minor injury not believed to have been caused by gunfire."

About 75 guests were taken outside, covered in blankets, to the Natick Mall across the street while officers went room-to-room searching for the gunman. Several other guests went to their cars to stay warm.

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Guests were evacuated from the hotel to the Natick Mall across Route 9. (WBZ-TV)

"The officers were going to different groups of people and trying to calm, make sure everybody stayed calm," said guest Angela Salas of Indiana. "They're very professional. They were exceptionally courteous. They have these very large scary guns and managed at the same time to say, 'We're very concerned for your safety and your warmth. We're going to arrange for shelter for you, please come this way'."

natick hotel
Police outside the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Natick early Tuesday. (WBZ-TV)

All guests were allowed to return to their rooms around 6 a.m.

"We strongly believe that the suspects were not and are not in the hotel at this time," Natick Police Chief James Hicks told reporters. "We believe they left in a vehicle, an unknown type of vehicle."

Hicks said the man who was targeted is cooperating with investigators. The chief was not sure how many suspects were involved. There have been no arrests, but Hicks said there is no danger to the public.

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