Employees, customers ducked for safety as shots from gunfight hit convenience store

Police say two men shot at each other from separate cars in the early morning hours of Wednesday in the parking lot of Gas Mart, a convenience store in the 1700 block of Missouri Avenue in East St. Louis.

Bullets shattered the store’s glass windows, hit a cooler and struck the walls inside the business.

Two workers and several customers heard the gunshots while inside the store.

“Employees ducked down — they were behind registers — customers ran to the back of the store,” East St. Louis Police Chief Jerry Simon said.

No one was injured during the shooting.

Simon said the incident occurred at 12:50 a.m.

“One guy shot at the other guy. The guy who was shot at first returned fire. Bullets from their guns struck glass windows, walls, glass doors,” Simon said.

Simon said police are retrieving surveillance video to identify the people involved in the shooting.

A black Acura riddled with bullet holes was left in the parking lot and police towed it.

The other car involved, a Chevrolet Camaro, fled the scene.

Illinois state Police Crime Scene technicians processed the scene.

This story was originally published September 12, 2018 at 12:58 PM.