1 killed, 1 injured in Chinese restaurant robbery in Houston

A robbery in a Chinese restaurant in the US city of Houston turned violent when a gunman opened fire to the owner and his brother, resulting in one death and another injury, local media reported Monday.

The deadly robbery happened around 10:45 am CST at the newly-opened "Mah Express" in southern Houston, local media KHOU reported. The family-run business were preparing for lunch when the gunman barged through the unlocked front door. Investigators say he fired one shot into the ceiling, then turned his gun on one of the men working in the restaurant.

"For no reason, from what we understand, he shot one brother in the thigh," said Lt. John Zitzmann, a homicide investigator dispatched to the murder scene. "The second brother ran to his aid by, as we understand it, attacking the gunman. And at that time, he shot the brother in the chest cavity."

That brother died of a gunshot wound to his chest. The other brother survived. A cook ran out a back door to get help.

The gunman bolted out of the door, jumped into a white SUV parked outside an auto supply shop next door and sped away. Investigators described him as "an African-American male in his early 30s, light-skinned in complexion and dressed in black."

The gunman is still at large and police called on residents to report information about his whereabouts.