A daring daylight jewelry heist led to panic and confusion at Fairview Shopping Centre on Sunday.

Montreal police said they received several reports from people claiming to have heard gunshots just after 4:00 p.m. According to police, the sound was actually a glass display case being broken by thieves in the jewelry section of The Bay department store of the Pointe-Claire shopping centre.

"I heard a big boom and then I was like 'Did someone fall? What happened? Then I heard five others, like 'boom, boom, boom, boom,'" said witness Roxanne Paquette. "I just heard everyone screaming and I was like, I have to run."

"All we saw is people running, saying 'There's a shooter, there's a shooter!'" said witness Jessica Owusu Nkrumah.

"They went inside, walked straight to the glass counter that was located near the east entrance, broke down the window with an object, took some items that were in that display counter and left the scene a couple seconds after," explained Montreal police spokesperson Raphael Bergeron, who said no gun was used in the heist.

Police said two people fled the scene on foot towards St. Jean Blvd. Witnesses described them as men who were wearing ski masks.

"We don't have a description of those persons," said Bergeron, adding that investigators are talking to witnesses and reviewing surveillance footage.

No one was injured. Police would not describe the items stolen, nor the value of what was swiped.

Contrary to some reports the mall was not evacuated. Shoppers and employees at The Bay left the building before police arrived on the scene. Only The Bay was cordoned off for the police investigation, while the rest of the mall remained open.

Maelle le Touzé, who works in a Fairview store, said she heard people running. She and a colleague heard rumours of gunshots and decided to stay away from the store's doors.

"I'm a little bit shaken up. I feel worried," she said. "It's a little bit emotional. I had tears in my eyes. It breaks my heart to know something like this can happen, especially the fact that it's Mother's Day. It's a little bit traumatizing."

She said it was the first time something like this had happened during her time working in the mall, but Fairview jewelry stores have been targeted by thieves in the past.

In March 2015, a Birks jewelry store located in Fairview was the target of a robbery. The thieves pepper sprayed a security guard and smashed a display case, making off with several items.

It was the third robbery at that store in five years. In November 2014, four men entered the store, smashed displays and pepper sprayed employees before fleeing.

The store was also robbed in 2010.