Mohammed Rasel was on the floor of a Brooklyn pizza shop. He had a bullet in his leg. A gunman walked over and touched him. The man wanted to see if Rasel was still alive.

Rasel did not move.

"He touched me he thinking I'm acting like I'm dying," Rasel told ABC7 New York.

Playing dead saved him. His friend and coworker was not so lucky.

Police say the gunman shot MD Yousuf, 44, in the head. Yousuf died. He was a dad. He left two girls, ages 12 and 3.

It happened Sunday, August 23, at American Best Wings and Pizza in Brownsville, Brooklyn.

Two days later, police say the same man hit a store in the Bronx.

It was just past midnight on Tuesday. The store was the 149 Grill in Melrose. A store camera caught it all. The video shows a man pull a gun. He shoots a customer, Tayvon Shuler, 33. Friends called Shuler "Plucky."

The video then shows the man step behind the counter. He grabs cash from the register. Workers and shoppers duck and run.

Shuler died at the hospital.

Two men dead in two days. Two stores hit. One shooter, police say. And no name for him at first, just a face on a video.

That set off a hunt across the city.

The FBI put up a reward. It went as high as $25,000 for a tip that led cops to the man. A group called the United Bodegas of America put up more. They doubled their own reward to $10,000. That group speaks for corner store owners and the people behind the counter.

Then, on Saturday morning, it ended.

Police say they found Jesus Acosta, 31, at a park in the Bronx. It sits near Watson Avenue and Morrison Avenue. Someone called 911 and said Acosta was there. The park is close to a police station.

Acosta had a gun on him, police say. He did not fight the officers.

He went in front of a judge on Sunday. A reporter asked him if he did what police say he did. He answered, "God is good, God is great."

Acosta is charged with two counts of murder. He also faces two counts of attempted murder, one count of manslaughter, four counts of robbery, and four gun charges. He is accused. He is not convicted. A court will decide.

Police say Acosta has 13 past arrests. The first one came when he was 14 years old. That case was an armed robbery.

He also served 10 years in state prison. ABC7 New York reports that case was a shooting on a subway platform. He got out on parole in April.

That last part is what has store owners angry.

"We are outraged that someone with 13 prior arrests was released on parole after serving approximately 10 years for assault and illegal gun possession," the United Bodegas of America said.

Fernando Mateo speaks for that group. He said he was glad about the arrest. He also said the work is not done. He wants more panic buttons in stores. He wants anyone caught with an illegal gun to serve at least 3 to 5 years.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani was asked about the parole call while the hunt was still on.

"I think first and foremost, we know that when the NYPD makes something a top priority for them, it is something that they put every single resource that they have towards it," Mamdani said. "I'm confident in their abilities of being able to find him. What this speaks to is the importance of public safety. And to me, every day is an opportunity for us to do more."

The families are left with the hole.

Yousuf worked the counter. His two girls are 12 and 3.

Shuler was a customer. He walked in and never walked out. His dad, Douglas Shuler, came to the deli to see the pile of flowers and candles left for his son.

"He's a good kid," Douglas Shuler said. He said his son "just got caught in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Rasel still has a bullet in his thigh. He has a wife and a baby who is 1 year old. He said he does not know how he will pay the bills now.

Store clerks in the Rio Grande Valley work the same late shifts. They stand behind the same kind of counter. A robbery in Brooklyn is 2,000 miles away. The fear is not.

Acosta is in jail. The case moves to court next.

A charge is not proof. Everyone is innocent until a court says otherwise.