ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. _ A gunman sexually assaulted at least one person and shot a woman at a Catholic Supply store in a Missouri strip mall Monday afternoon before disappearing, police said.
A manhunt was still underway several hours after the shooting in St. Louis County, reported at 3:19 p.m.
A police spokesman said at a news conference about 5 p.m. that investigators had "no idea" of a motive and that the man did not appear to know the victims. St. Louis County Police Sgt. Shawn McGuire encouraged anyone with information or who saw anything suspicious to call 911 immediately.
"We have a loose, armed gunman out there who's already shot one person," McGuire said.
He said the woman was critically injured in the shooting and was still alive, but had no other information about her.
Witnesses described the attacker to police as a white man, about 5 feet 7 inches with a heavy build. He was wearing a black jacket and blue jeans with a large belt. He was wearing a black or gray hat. Police were searching the area for the gunman.
"No detail is too small to report," police said.
Police shut down the shopping plaza, in an unincorporated area of the county near Queeny Park, on the north side of Manchester Road between Interstate 270 and Highway 141. McGuire said officers searched the area and weren't sure if the man left on foot or in a vehicle.
They asked people to avoid the area as police investigated.
"Our hearts go out to the victims of this horrific tragedy at Catholic Supply," Archbishop Robert J. Carlson said in a statement. "We are praying for these victims, especially the victim in critical condition at this time. We join with civil authorities asking for the community's assistance in apprehending the culprit of this crime."
Officers were first brought to the scene by a 911 caller who reported that the shooter went inside the store and ordered women inside to strip at gunpoint, and sexually assaulted several of them before shooting one of them in the head. McGuire said at least one sexual assault had occurred inside the store, but did not know how many victims there had been.
Shala Malik, 32, was helping a customer at her family store, Salam Market, in the same shopping center shortly before she saw two police cars pull up to the store next door.
Within minutes, more police vehicles and an ambulance arrived.
"All I could see were flashing lights," Malik said.
She caught a glimpse of paramedics carrying a woman out of the store on a stretcher, she said. Officers told her that a man had shot her inside. She wondered if the shooter was trying to rob the store.
"It was very shocking for us," she said. "I'm surprised I didn't hear any shouting or anything."
Malik was used to seeing three women who worked at the store, but didn't know their names, she said. They would sometimes buy food from Salam Market, and she would sometimes pick up mail that had accidentally been delivered to their store.
Several family and friends were calling Malik to ask if she was OK, she said.
"We are next door," she said. "I kept wondering, 'what if it was me?'
"It's all so, so sad. I hope they find the guy who shot her."
