ROANOKE, Va. – UPDATE
Roanoke police have identified the man who was shot at a convenience store.
Roanoke resident Mohammad Hussein Hendi, 38, was working at the Z-Mart on Melrose Ave. when he was shot Thursday afternoon. He was sent to the hospital but his condition is unknown.
A police spokesman says at this point it appears to be an attempted robbery. They recovered a gun.
Right now, Dawn Michele Whitlock, 43, of Roanoke County is charged with malicious wounding and possession of a firearm as a convicted felon.
ORIGINAL STORY
Roanoke police have arrested a woman after a shooting at a convenience store in Northwest Roanoke on Thursday afternoon.
At 12:14 p.m. police responded to the Z-Mart on Melrose Avenue and found that a store employee had been shot in his upper body, according to a police spokesman.
He was taken to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital for treatment. It's not clear yet how badly he is hurt.
The shooting happened inside the store and the shooter left before police arrived.
Police say a witness at the scene gave officers a description of the white Toyota pickup truck that the suspect, a white woman, had driven away from the scene in.
Minutes later, officers observed the truck described on Cove Road and stopped the truck.
The driver was identified as Dawn Michele Whitlock, 43, of Roanoke County.
After further investigation, police charged Whitlock with malicious wounding and she was taken to the Roanoke City Jail.
The Roanoke Peacemakers known for helping to prevent crime in the city came to the scene shortly after the shooting.
"We are out here constantly doing the patrols in the day and the night. I got a phone call so we just drove through. And so we know we got to be more proactive in being out here. I just feel more cameras need to be put in the areas so when things happen in the high crime areas. If we can't catch the person that's doing it right then and there, you can review the cameras and hopefully we can go from there," said Shawn Hunters, Peacemakers.
Evidence technicians are still collecting evidence from the scene of the shooting and the investigation is ongoing.
The store has a violent past. In 2006, then-owner Zaid Almajali, 43, was killed. A photo of him is on the store's sign.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.