WALDORF, Md. — A clerk at a 7-Eleven store was shot and killed early Thursday morning in what appears to be a robbery, according to the Charles County Sheriff's Office. The female clerk was identified as 49-year-old Lynn Marie Maher of White Plains.
The shooting happened around 1 a.m. at the 7-Eleven on Middletown Road in Waldorf. Charles County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Diane Richardson said the shooting happened within seconds of a man entering the store and demanding money.
Richardson said the suspect was dressed in a hooded sweatshirt, surgical mask and jeans.
"He approached her, he produced a gun, it looked like she was complying and he shot her at that time," Richardson said.
Several customers were inside the store when the shooting happened, Richardson said. Detectives are reviewing video footage from inside the store to figure out where the suspect headed following the shooting.
Maher was a mother of three, and stepmother to a fourth, who was regarded as a friendly fixture that made the convenience store a community gathering place, according to her family.
“She has three children," her brother-in-law Chris Maher said. "One is a business owner and another is a Marine. He's a 20-year-old marine currently stationed out in California, and the news to him this morning about his mother is absolutely devastating. Now you have a 20-year-old kid out in California trying to make arrangements to fly home, so he can put his mother at rest."
Maher was also a mother to a 17-year-old high school student and a stepmother to her husband's 19-year-old son, her brother in law said.
Dismayed customers left flowers in front of the closed up store.
“Everybody’s shocked about it," customer Vincent Lancaster said. "It’s an uproar.”
Originally from Germantown, Maher was a second-degree black belt in taekwondo who volunteered to teach kids who couldn’t afford lessons self-defense, her family said.
But when faced with a gun, she didn’t resist the robbery, they said.
"This is a very quiet area," Richardson said. "It's unusual that something like this happens. We think that the community obviously will be outraged, and again if anybody knows anything, we're hoping that they'll call."
Charles County Crime Solvers is offering a cash reward of up to $2,500 and 7-Eleven is offering a reward up to $10,000 leading to the arrest of the suspect.
Tipsters wishing to remain anonymous may contact Charles County Crime Solvers by calling 1-866-411-TIPS. Tips can also be submitted online at www.charlescountycrimesolvers.com