4 Asians among the 8 slain in Texas mall shooting
By Carl Samson
Four Asian people lost their lives in the mass shooting at a mall in Allen, Texas, over the weekend, a grim incident that adds to more than 200 mass shootings in the U.S. so far into the year.
A total of eight victims were killed in the shooting at Allen Premium Outlets, which occurred just after 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. The mall sits in the 800 block of West Stacy Road near U.S. Highway 75.
Kyu, Cindy and James Cho were among the victims. The Korean American family had just celebrated their son William’s 6th birthday four days prior and were at the mall to exchange some clothes he had received.
William survived the shooting, but his parents and 3-year-old brother James did not. A GoFundMe page organized for their loved ones has so far raised $1.2 million.
“The family is in deep mourning,” the page reads. “After being released from the ICU, their 6-year-old son William is the only surviving member of this horrific event.”
Aishwarya Thatikonda, an Indian engineer, was also killed in the incident.
She was reportedly out with a friend, who was also shot but survived.
Thatikonda moved to the U.S. five years ago to pursue a master’s degree at Eastern Michigan University. She graduated in 2020.
“As the nation has to once again grapple with a senseless act of gun violence, we share our condolences with Aishwarya’s family and friends,” the university said in a statement. “She will forever be remembered as a strong Eastern Michigan University Eagle.”
The other deceased victims include sisters and elementary students Daniela and Sofia Mendoza, mall security guard Christian LaCour and Dallas resident Elio Cumana-Rivas.
Six more people reportedly remained hospitalized as of Monday morning, three of whom were in critical condition.
The suspect, identified as 33-year-old Mauricio Garcia, was shot dead by a police officer who was near the location at the time of the incident.
Investigation into his motive continues.
Authorities believe Garcia had made anti-women, anti-Jewish and anti-POC posts on Russian social media platform OK.ru. A post from the day of the shooting suggested what appeared to be mental struggles.
“Even if I did go to a psychologist, their (sic) not going to be able to fix with whatevers wrong with me. Besides that sh*t’s expensive,” the post reportedly stated.
Saturday’s incident adds to more than 200 mass shootings recorded so far in 2023, according to nonprofit Gun Violence Archive (GVA). All incidents involved at least four people — other than the attacker — getting shot.
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