ROWAN COUNTY — Mainank Patel, 36, owner of the Tobacco House store at 2580 Airport Road, has died after a shooting about 11:18 a.m. Tuesday morning, and a juvenile male is in custody for the crime, according to Rowan County Sheriff’s Office. Because the young man is a juvenile, deputies are not able to release his name.

Deputies initially responded to the Tobacco House convenience store located at the intersection of Airport and Miller Chapel roads in response to a 911 hang up call, said Captain Mark McDaniel, public information officer for the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office. While deputies were en route to the location, communications received another call from the location saying that there had been a shooting.

When the deputies arrived on scene they found Patel suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, said McDaniel. The victim was reportedly taken to Novant Health Rowan Medical Center then transported to Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, where he died as a result of his injuries.

A security video that showed a tall, slender white male running across the store parking lot away from the building. He was wearing black shorts, a black hoodie, a black ski mask and white Nike tennis shoes with burgundy logos, and appeared to have a black handgun in his hand, said McDaniel. Deputies, with assistance for NC State Highway Patrol helicopters and the RCSO K-9, conducted an extensive search of the area but did not locate the suspect at that time.

McDaniel said that the sheriff’s office is not certain of the motive in the shooting, but that it currently appears to have been a robbery. No one else was injured.

Family members, neighbors and customers were still on the scene as deputies were collecting evidence, and several said the man was one of the nicest they knew, they did not understand why something like this would happen to him, that he is like family.

The incident is still an active investigation and anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Lt. Ryan Barkley at 704-216-8711 or Detective Chris Grer at 704-216-8662. Information can also be submitted anonymously to the Rowan County Crime Stoppers at https://www.rowancountync.gov/1936/Rowan-County-Crime-Stoppers or by calling 1-866-639-5245.