his friends and family , but `` he was a piece of s -- all his life , and now he 'll be famous , '' she told CNN . She said Hawkins was a friend of her sons and `` reminded me of a lost puppy that nobody wanted . '' He came to live with her about a year and a half ago , telling her he could not stay with his own family because of `` some issues with his stepmother and him . '' She described Hawkins as well-behaved , although `` he had a lot of emotional problems , obviously . '' The shootings began about 1:42 p.m. Seven people were found dead at the scene by officers arriving six minutes later ; two others , a male and a female , died after being transported to Creighton University Medical Center , said Fire Chief Robert Dahlquist . A Creighton spokeswoman said a second female was undergoing surgery and was in critical condition Wednesday afternoon . Three other people were taken to the University of Nebraska Medical Center . One , a 61-year-old man who sustained a chest wound after being shot in the armpit
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A 19-year-old gunman who killed eight people and then himself Wednesday at the Westroads Mall in Omaha , Nebraska , left a suicide note , police said . Police have identified the gunman as Robert A. Hawkins , 19 , of Nebraska . Five other people were injured , and two of them were in critical condition , hospital officials said . Chief Thomas Warren of the Omaha Police Department called the shooting `` premeditated , '' but said it `` appears to be very random and without provocation . '' Surveillance cameras may have captured the shooting , Warren said . `` We 'll be here throughout the night ; it 's a very extensive crime scene , '' he said . Police identified the gunman as Robert A. Hawkins of Nebraska . They have recovered an SKS assault rifle and the suspect 's vehicle . Debora Maruca Kovac , Hawkins ' landlord who found the suicide note , said he wrote he was sorry for everything and did not want to be a burden to anyone any longer . Watch landlord describe phone call from shooter '' Hawkins said in the note he loved