While police collect evidence at the San Francisco Gift Center and Jewelry Mart that left two dead and one critically injured, shop owner Nilo Mohammed stood outside Friday night wondering when she can get back inside and secure her store.
Mohammed said she was in her store around 2 p.m. when a police officer came in and told her to lock the door.
She didn't know why and a few minutes later the officer came back, "He said get out. Go go go! I tried to turn off the light he said leave it on and go," Mohammed said.
Police evacuated the large building because a gunman had shot and killed a woman, stabbed another woman to death and shot and stabbed a man inside the store Victoga. The gunman's motive was unknown early Saturday.
Police would not say whether the man was trying to rob the store, if it was a personal dispute or if he was mentally ill.
Police said they encountered the shooter, who they say was covered in blood, as they responded to a 911 call of shots fired. Officers said the suspect fired shot at them as he ran down Brannan Street.
Police say officers did not return fire but instead took cover. They said the suspect fired again at officers from inside a taqueria. Again police held their fire. They said they didn't have a clear shot because so many people were in the area.
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In the end, the man surrendered when his revolver was out of bullets.
Police kept the area on lock down for hours searching for a possible second suspect. Police said video evidence made it clear the gunman was alone.
Mohammed says the shooting is shocking because the Gift Center and Jewelry Mart is a secure building. She has to show her ID badge to get in and customers must make an appointment and show ID to enter.
As police piece together what happened and why, Mohammed says she is sad to know the next time she returns to work - some familiar faces will be gone.
She doesn't know the victims names but she knows she has said to hello to the nearly every day for many years.
The suspect was in police custody Friday night and was being treated for superficial wounds to his hands.
San Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr did not talk about a motive but said it was not the first time the suspect was in the Jewelry Mart building.
Some well-known tech companies are located in the area and were under the lock down. Pinterest and Zynga were among the companies that were shut down during the investigation.
By 6:30 police declared the area clear.
Police said two female victims were pronounced deceased at the jewelry store. A third male victim was also located in the store with multiple injuries and transported to San Francisco General Hospital with life threatening injuries.
Police said one of the female victim suffered gun shot wounds. The second female victim suffered wounds from some type of edged weapon. The male victim suffered both gun shot wounds and wounds from an edged weapon, police said.
The Jewelry Mart is a multi-story wholesale retail complex in the South of Market District. It is not open to the public. Customers need to be on a list in order to get into the store area and are checked through by a security guard.
Once you have access through the guard you have access to all of the stores through a hallway that loops around in a circular pattern.Most of the stores sell jewelry.
According to its website, Victoga has been in the jewelry business over 26 years and specializes in gold chains, gold earrings, gold pendants, and gold bracelets. It said it also offers gold buying for customers who want to sell their unwanted, old, or broken gold jewelry.
