Police hunt for clues in shooting of Delco merchant

Delaware County investigators are scouring surveillance video for clues to who killed a Collingdale merchant.

"The tapes will tell," Robert Adams, Collingdale Borough Chief of Police, said Thursday.

Yogesh "Yogi" Bhavsar, 34, of Newark Del., was shot in the chest during an apparent armed robbery Wednesday afternoon at the Variety Store in the 500 block of McDade Blvd. Bhavsar, who worked at the store for about seven years, was pronounced dead at the scene, Adams said.

Police are reviewing tapes obtained from inside the store, as well as those from nearby businesses and homes from around the time when Bhavsar was killed.

At 4:42 p.m. police were called to the store. Moments earlier a 5-year-old child had walked out and told a woman entering that there was no one inside. The woman then looked over the counter and saw Bhavsar on the floor. She went nearby to Tommy's Tavern and called 911, Adams said.

Two men were held for questioning but, released at 10 p.m. Wednesday, Adams said. Witnesses saw the two walking back and forth on the street and into the store. They were doing laundry nearby, he said.

On Thursday afternoon between 4 and 5 o'clock, the approximate time of the shooting, police will be in the area talking to motorists and passing out informational fliers.

By Thursday morning, a memorial of stuffed animals had started to grow on top of a washing machine on the sidewalk outside the shuttered convenience store. Police tape and an orange crime scene sign hung on the door. Bhavsar's black Honda CRV was still parked in front.

A note on the car window was from a customer and friend, Raven Midgett. "The last time I saw you, you gave me a hug."

When she heard of his death, Midgett said her heart dropped. Bhavsar was friendly with many of his customers and would often trust them to come back with money or pay at a later date if they were short, she said. He always had a smile for everyone.

Bhavsar had family in the area and in India, where he would send money, she said. He was just getting comfortable in the county, liked to wear H&M and American Eagle brand clothing, and had just pierced his ears.

Tommy Berry, 71, the owner of the tavern, theorized the killer was someone who knew there would be a lot of cash in the store.

"He did a decent lottery business," Berry said. This week's $75 million lottery would generate more sales and customers would always "square up" their bills by the end of the month, Berry said.

"He really helped a lot of people," said Tony Mateu, 73, who works at Rick's Appliance a few doors down. "He had not an enemy in the world."

Mateu said he had spoken to Bhavsar about a "toy" gun he kept out on a shelf.

"Throw that thing away," Mateu said he told Bhavsar. "When you have a gun in America, it is not playing."

Contact staff writer Mari A. Schaefer at 610-892-9149, mschaefer@phillynews.com or @MariSchaefer on Twitter.