Two men were killed and another was injured early yesterday evening during an apparent robbery, police said.
The double homicide happened shortly after 6 p.m. at Moon Smoke Shop, 120 W. Grant Road, in the Grantstone Shopping Center.
One of the men killed was 36 years old and was a customer at the smoke shop. He died on the way to the hospital, police said.
The other man killed was an employee and was dead when police arrived, said Sgt. Eugene Mejia of the Tucson Police Department. His age was not available.
Another employee, who was 47 years old, was shot in the face and arm. He was taken to a local hospital, where police planned to interview him about the shooting, Mejia said.
Police are searching for two men suspected of committing the shootings, Mejia said.
The first man is described as Anglo, 6 feet tall, between 25 and 30 years old, wearing a cowboy hat and a black shirt with yellow writing.
The second suspect is described as Anglo or Hispanic, 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighing 150 pounds and wearing dark clothing. His age was not available.
The men were seen leaving the area in a light-blue, older-looking pickup truck with possibly a step-side short bed, Mejia said.
Mejia did not know last night what the two men may have stolen from the store or whether the apparent robbers met with any resistance. He said it appeared that the pair entered the store through the front entrance.
The manager of Tucson Store Fixtures, which is next door to the shop, said he called police after an employee of the store came out screaming for help. The manager did not want to be identified.
Shopping center workers and neighborhood residents complained about crime in the area.
The manager of ColorTyme, also in the shopping center, said that he calls 911 an average of five times a week and that his store has been broken into five times in the past year.
A man who lives in the area with his family and did not want to be identified said they are moving because of crime. He said that two cars have been broken into in the family's driveway and that he worries for the safety of his 10-year-old son.
"You just can't have kids growing up in this neighborhood," he said.
The last armed robbery in Tucson that turned deadly occurred on Dec. 29. David Botz, 35, manager of the Speedway Schwinn store, 3575 E. Speedway, was fatally shot and a bicycle was taken during the midday robbery. Gary Roper, 15, was charged with first-degree murder, theft and armed robbery and will be tried as an adult, a juvenile court judge ruled in February.
