According to the victim's co-workers, the suspect was laughing and joking with the young clerk before gunfire erupted.
"He went up to the counter asking as if he was going to buy something," said Carl Baker of the Redlands Police Department. "At that point he pulled the gun on the clerk, demanded the money and ended up shooting the clerk before clearing the cash register and fleeing."
The clerk's friends said he was shot in the hand. The bullet ended up lodged in his leg. He's expected to make a full recovery.
The suspect is described as a black man in his early to mid 20s, 5-foot-10, 180 pounds with a goatee. He was wearing a white hard hat and a dark jacket.
Anyone with information is asked to call Redlands police at (909) 798-7681.
