The two people killed in Columbia Mall on Maryland Saturday were young co-workers at a shop popular with teens -- and one was a store manager raising a 2-year-old child.
A few details about their lives are beginning to emerge as the investigation into Saturday's deadly shooting at the mall continues.
Brianna Benlolo, 21, of College Park, Md., and Tyler Johnson, 25, of Mt, Airy, Md. were shot and killed Saturday inside the Zumiez store where they worked, police said.
The suspected gunman, Darion Marcus Aguilar, of College Park, Md., died at the scene of an apparent gunshot wound.
Brianna Benlolo
Benlolo had a 2-year-old son, said her housemate, Corey Lewis. Lewis called her "a wonderful mom and a wonderful person."
He said she had lived in the College Park house for about two months.
Benlolo's grandfather, John Feins, told the Associated Press in a telephone interview from Florida that his granddaughter's job at Zumiez was her first since she went back to work after her son's birth.
"She was all excited," he said.
He said he had spoken with his daughter, Brianna's mother, earlier in the day, but didn't know who the gunman was or whether the person knew his granddaughter.
He described his daughter's family as a military family that had moved frequently and had been in Colorado before moving to Maryland about two years ago. He said his granddaughter was on good terms with her son's father, and they shared custody.
"I mean what can you say? You go to work and make a dollar and you got some idiot coming in and blowing people away," he said.
Tyler Johnson
Tyler Johnson had recently moved to Mt. Airy, Md. from Ellicott City, Md. His family told News4 that they were too shaken up to speak about his death.
But a neighbor in Mt. Airy said he was stunned to hear that his quiet neighbor was the victim of the shooting.
"Floored -- had no idea," said Gregg Todd. "I didn't even that know he worked in the mall. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family -- very nice, very quiet, very good family."
On Johnson's Facebook page, he is frank about his process in recovery, announcing celebrations of his one and two years of sobriety. He started working at Zumiez in November, 2013.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
