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Batman shooting death toll rises to 14

Cape Town - The death toll from the mass shooting in Denver, Colorado in the US, where masked gunmen reportedly opened fire in a crowded cinema during a midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises, has risen to 14, according to news reports.

Another 50 people are reported injured.

Sapa reports that police arrested one of the alleged gunmen and were searching for the other following chaotic scenes at a midnight showing of The Dark Knight Rises, the latest Batman movie, according to KDVR, a local Fox affiliate.

Police spokesperson Cassidee Carlson says "the scene is still very active and we have little information for release at this time."

Swedish Medical Center spokesperson Nicole Williams says two people injured at the theatre have arrived at the hospital in critical condition.

The nearby University of Colorado hospital received 20 people with minor to severe injuries, hospital spokesperson Jackie Montgomery told CNN before the interview was cut short due to technical difficulties.

Local radio reported people running screaming from the Century Aurora 16 Movie Theatre in a mall in the suburb of Aurora.

An Aurora police dispatcher confirmed a shooting at a cinema but did not provide further details.

KDVR said the shooting was carried out by two gunmen in separate theatres who sowed panic with tear gas.

Paul Otermat, who was in the cinema with his girlfriend when the gunman began firing, told Sky News: "A man walked through emergency exit. I thought it was some sort of publicity stunt for a second there and then he threw tear gas into the crowd.

"He started firing shots into the crowd. We ducked down me and my girlfriend and dragged ourselves out of the theater. We ran through the lobby and we heard more shots and ran into the parking lot and got into our car and drove off."

Aurora is a suburb of Denver near the scene of the 1999 Columbine High School shooting, in which 13 people were shot dead and another 24 were wounded.

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