February 18, 2016 - Police investigate the scene of a shooting at a Citgo gas station at the intersection of Dunn Ave and Cherry Rd.

Crime Report Shelby County 911 - A Crime Report SHARE February 18, 2016 - Police tape off an area containing blood from one of the people shot at a Citgo gas station at the intersection of Dunn Ave and Cherry Rd. February 18, 2016 - Police investigate the scene of a shooting at a Citgo gas station at the intersection of Dunn Ave and Cherry Rd. Related Coverage Man charged in fatal shooting of gas station employee

By Kayleigh Skinner of The Commercial Appeal

A store employee is dead and a suspect is in critical condition after a shooting during a reported robbery attempt Thursday afternoon.

The shooting happened at 12:03 p.m. at the Citgo gas station on Dunn Avenue near Cherry Road.

According to co-owner Ron Blades, one of the victims was an employee of the AT-One store. A suspect attempted to rob the store and the suspect and the employee exchanged gunfire, Blades said.

Both men were taken to the Regional Medical Center in critical condition, but the employee died at the hospital, said Memphis police spokesman Louis Brownlee.

Witnesses on the scene identified the man as 20-year-old Abdul Sidar.

Police are searching for two more suspects in the robbery attempt, said colonel Samuel Hines. It is possible that one of the suspects who fled the scene was also shot, he said.

The store was robbed two weeks ago, Hines said. No suspects have been arrested in that robbery.

Jon Graham was working on a truck outside Jim’s Auto Repair across the street from the gas station when he heard a shot Thursday, he said.

About three minutes later, Graham heard another shot and saw three men run out of the gas station as the owner chased after them, he said. One of the men was shot by the owner and fell on Dunn Avenue. The suspect then struggled to get up before falling again, Graham said. The man got up and fell again outside Cherry Gardens apartments before the owner grabbed him and brought him back toward the store, Graham said.

“He was trying to get away any way he could,” Graham said.

When the owner went inside to call police, Graham held the shot man down with his foot so he could not run away again.

“I’m 75 years old and I’ve been through a bunch of things, so I’m really not afraid,” he said.

He said he thought the man was shot in the face because he was “bleeding like mad out of the mouth.”

Graham said he heard five to seven shots. The other men fled in two cars, he said.

“I’ve never seen anything like that in my life,” said Carolyn Bullington, co-owner of Jim’s Auto Repair. Bullington also saw the chase from inside the shop.

Blood spatter was visible in the doorway of a Cherry Gardens apartment and on a silver Nissan Armada outside the Citgo.

Neighbors gathered outside the store to mourn Sidar, who many described as a quiet young man who always smiled at customers when they entered the gas station.

“He was a hard-working, good young man,” said Hasan Ayesh, who occasionally works in the store. “He was helping his father take care of his business.”

Ayesh said Sidar was taking classes at a Mississippi community college to become a police officer.

Sassy Smothers lives on Titus Road near the gas station and visited the store frequently. She sobbed in front of the yellow crime scene tape Thursday when she learned the victim died.

“He was just a kid,” she said while wiping away tears. “All he wanted to do was go to school and get his education. He didn’t ask to be shot or killed.”

Reporter Yolanda Jones contributed to this report.