Robber shoots, kills Ballard store clerk

A couple may have witnessed the moments just before or after a man fatally shot a convenience-store clerk during an armed robbery in Ballard on Sunday morning.

Seattle police detectives say a white man and a white woman entered the store around the time the crime was in progress then quickly fled.

They hope the couple will contact them.

The 28-year-old clerk was shot in the abdomen and thigh after getting into a fight with the gunman, said police spokesman Jeff Kappel. The clerk was taken to Harborview Medical Center with critical injuries and later died. His identity has not been released.

The gunman is believed to have left the store on foot, Kappel said.

The owner of the Pit Stop Express and 76 station where the robbery and shooting occurred told KING 5 his employee was a friendly worker who had parents in the area and was hoping to start a family.

The gas station and convenience store were closed Sunday. Yellow crime-scene tape wrapped around the building.

According to police, a passer-by called 911 around 6:30 a.m. after seeing a man with a bandanna covering his face inside the store. When police arrived at the business, near the intersection of 15th Avenue Northwest and Northwest 58th Street, they found the wounded clerk, Kappel said.

Video from the store shows a man who appears to be in his 20s and is about 5 feet 10 inches tall and skinny. He wore a dark-colored beanie cap with the snowboard-designer name "Burton" printed in gold, sunglasses and the dark-colored bandanna, which had stars on it. He walked behind the counter and fired.

The man was wearing a dark jacket, dark pants and black shoes with a white stripe on them. Witnesses said he carried a satchel.

Kappel said the suspect was light-skinned but the bandanna so fully covered his face that his race was unknown.

Kappel asks that the couple or anyone else with information call 911.

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com

Craig Welch: 206-464-2093 or cwelch@seattletimes.com