Crime Fighters: Who killed Salahaldin Mahmoud?

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A relative of a state senator from Philadelphia was gunned down while attending a friend's community party. His mother says she had just spoken to him less than an hour before the tragedy.

Salahaldin Mahmoud was a young entrepreneur. At 21-years-old he was running his own towing business.

On the night of July 4, Mahmoud was working in the area of 60th and Sansom streets in West Philadelphia.

"I just had picked up the phone and called him at 10 o'clock. He said, 'Mom, I'm gonna go get something to eat, and then I'm going to go back to work,'" said his mother, Lennora Mahmoud.

She says Mahmoud stopped by a holiday celebration at a clothing store called Premiere Bande in the same location.

Mahmoud was friends with the store owner.

"He invited everyone from the community, and my son knew him well," she said.

At 10:42 p.m., dozens of shots were fired into the crowd at the party. Surveillance video shows several shooters firing guns before fleeing on foot. Mahmoud and the 23-year-old owner of Premiere Bande were shot and killed. A 16-year-old girl was injured.

Mahmoud was the cousin of State Senator Sharif Street.

"This could happen to anybody's child. I never thought it would happen to mine," she said.

The City of Philadelphia is offering up to a $20,000 reward. The Citizens Crime Commission is making another $18,700 available for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the persons responsible.

All you have to do is call the Citizens Crime Commission at 215-546-TIPS. All calls will remain anonymous.

"If you know what happened, you know the tips are anonymous. If you want to, please come forward by any means," Lennora said.