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At the Piazza, patrons and tenants move on after 'isolated incident'

Inside her apartment, concealed in a bedroom closet, police found four kilograms of cocaine and more than $100,000 in cash.

Also, the police homicide unit's Riehl said that, in surveillance footage taken from that day, a man could be seen leaving the seventh floor shortly after the crime.

He was carrying a duffel bag as he left the building, taking time to step over the bodies, the lieutenant said.

Police believe he was hiding in Thal's apartment at the time of the shooting. Riehl said police are looking for the man.

"We know who he is; it's just a matter of finding him," he said.

Thal was known to have been a "party promoter," gathering crowds to happening night spots like Plush Nightclub, located not far from Northern Liberties, at 338 N. 8th Street.

Police are processing evidence secured from the crime scene, such as a fingerprint lifted from the building's lobby, where the first shooter waited for the other two men.

Investigators last week said they did not know how another man, who acted as a lookout for the gunmen, had gotten into the building. He had been standing near a hallway window on the sixth floor.

Also, while the identities of the four persons involved in the shooting still are unknown to police, Riehl said police do know the identity of the individual who might have engineered the ambush, and they're looking for him.

"We're still searching for the identities of the gunmen," said Riehl. "And we are actively pursuing the other suspect."

AN ISOLATED INCIDENT

During an afternoon visit to the Piazza on July 3, few of the many who were out and about taking in the sunshine seemed concerned with the days-old crime or Jones' more recent arrest.

On the warm, sunny Friday, many people toured the Piazza, most carrying shopping bags and boxes from one boutique to another as a live jazz band performed at the northern edge of the complex, located at 2nd Street and Germantown Avenue.

Instead, most asked to comment on the recent crime had seemingly put the murders behind them, citing the shooting as an "isolated incident."

"I don't think things will change here," said Seth Rovner, owner of Trick Zone, a specialty magic shop in the Piazza.

From the window of his store, Rovner could see the windows of the seventh floor in the building next door, the very windows both victims peered through moments before they were killed.

Just a few feet across the paved walkway from Rovner's shop is the very entrance where police suspect the three gunmen gained access to the building.

On the recent afternoon, a burly guard could be seen sitting inside the lobby.

Rovner said that, even with his shop so close to the murder scene, he hasn't seen a change in business.

"This was just an isolated incident. When it first happened, people were scared, people were talking about it until Monday I guess, but I haven't heard much since," said Rovner. "This could have happened anywhere."

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