Black Friday turns "Bloody Friday" as three killed in U.S.

In New York an employee of a suburban Wal-Mart died after customers trampled him while swarming into the store as it opened.

 

Stores across the United States hope to ring in billions of dollars in holiday sales beginning on Friday, but shoppers concerned about a shrinking economy have vowed to rein in their spending. Most U.S. stores start major sales on "Black Friday", the day after Thanksgiving. Â

 

Two men pulled guns and shot each other to death in a Toys 'R' Us in Palm Desert, Calif., about 11:35 a.m. Friday after the women with them erupted into a bloody brawl, the Associated Press reported.

 

Riverside County Sheriff's Sgt. Dennis Gutierrez said the fight was not over a toy. He would not answer a question about whether the shooting was gang-related.

 

"I think the obvious question everyone has is who takes loaded weapons into a Toys 'R' Us?" Palm Desert Councilman Jim Ferguson said. "I doubt it was the casual holiday shopper."

 

TRAMPLING AT WAL-MART

A Wal-Mart worker was killed Friday when shoppers desperate for bargains broke down the doors at a 5 a.m. sale.

 

Other workers were knocked down as they tried to rescue the man, and customers shouted angrily and kept shopping when store officials said they were closing because of the death, news agencies reported.

 

The store in Valley Stream on Long Island closed for several hours before reopening.

 

Shoppers stepped over the man on the ground, identified by police as Jdimytai Damour of Queens, and streamed into the store. When told to leave, they complained that they had been in line since Thursday morning.

 

Nassau police said about 2,000 people gathered outside the store doors at the mall. The impatient crowd knocked the man to the ground as he opened the doors, leaving a metal portion of the frame crumpled like an accordion.

 

Damour, 34, was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said. The exact cause of death has not been determined.

 

Store managers had expected a large crowd on Black Friday and had requested additional internal and third-party security, more store associates and help from the Nassau police.

 

Barricades were even put up, according to a follow-up statement from Hank Mullany, a senior vice president for the company and president of its northeast division, LA Times reported Saturday.