With a bandolier full of shotgun shells under his trench coat and a backpack over his shoulder with more ammunition, Sulejmen Talovic stepped out of his car at the parking terrace of a shopping mall and almost immediately began shooting.

The 18-year-old Bosnian immigrant, packing a shotgun and a .38-caliber pistol, fired randomly at anyone in his line of sight, trying to kill as many people as he could, police said.

By the time Monday night's carnage was over, in about six minutes, Talovic killed five shoppers and put bullets in four other people, leaving them in critical or serious condition. He was finally cornered by an off-duty police officer and shot dead in a barrage of bullets fired by other officers.

Talovic "had one thing in mind and that was to kill a large number of people," Salt Lake City Police Chief Chris Burbank said.

Police were still trying to figure out Talovic's motive for killing strangers. Neighbors said he kept to himself, living with his mother and two sisters. An aunt said the shooting spree was inexplicable.

Talovic was a legal U.S. resident, arriving with family members as war refugees in 1998, said Virginia Kice, a spokeswoman with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Shawn Munns was first in Talovic's line of fire.

Munns, 34, had stepped into a courtyard after a meal with his wife and two stepchildren when Talovic blasted him with a shotgun and declared, "Die mother," according to sister-in-law Jodie Sparrow.

Munns staggered into the Hard Rock Cafe and warned others of the gunman. Munns was in serious condition late Tuesday with dozens of shotgun pellets in his side.

Talovic shot another shopper in the courtyard, then entered the Trolley Square mall, a collection of century-old trolley barns with winding cobblestone walkways, and shot a woman, Burbank said. Then he walked into a gift shop crowded with Valentine's Day shoppers and shot five people.

Talovic walked through the mall, shooting yet another person while missing others, when an off-duty police officer distracted him, Burbank said.

Ken Hammond, the off-duty officer from Ogden, said he exchanged gunfire with Talovic long enough to let Salt Lake City officers position themselves to "take out the suspect."

"I don't necessarily feel like a hero," Hammond said with his wife by his side at a news conference at Ogden headquarters. "I feel like I was there and did what I had to do."

Burbank said Hammond's quick action saved untold lives. He said it wasn't clear which shots killed Talovic.

Investigators knew little about Talovic, who was enrolled in numerous city schools before withdrawing in 2004, the school district said.

Talovic's aunt, Ajka Omerovic, emerged briefly from the family's house to say relatives had no idea why the young man attacked so many strangers.

"He was a such a good boy. I don't know what happened," she told Salt Lake City television station KSL.

Outside the mall, candles and flowers were left as memorials to the victims, who were identified as Jeffrey Walker, 52, Vanessa Quinn, 29, Kirsten Hinkley, 15, Teresa Ellis, 29, and Brad Frantz, 24.

Four people who were wounded remained hospitalized Tuesday, two in critical condition, two in serious.

Accountant Jeff Barlow was on a date at another restaurant when he looked outside and saw the gunman firing from the hip.

"I thought it was some kind of joke -- some kind of movie or stunt," Barlow said. "I didn't believe it was happening. And then I saw a man go down in a courtyard. I realized this was serious. These are real bullets flying around."

His date, Stephanie Bronson, added: "Just crazy. Absolutely terrifying."

David Dean, who owns a greeting-card store at the mall, said three or four people died inside his store, which was packed with Valentine's Day shoppers.

Associated Press writers Doug Alden, Jennifer Dobner and Debbie Hummel contributed to this report.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page A1.