Man shot to death after Fort Worth car accident identified as ‘pillar’ of Dallas’ Asian community
By Bryan Ke
Authorities have identified the man killed in a shooting following a minor traffic accident on South University Drive in Fort Worth, Dallas, on Monday.
The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that Chin “Jin” Shin, a 43-year-old business owner and a “pillar” of Dallas’ Asian community, died from gunshot wounds. His death has been ruled as a homicide.
One person from the sedan reportedly called a man to serve as a “peacemaker” following the crash, and the incident soon turned physical. Shin was shot in the torso and pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
No arrests have been made as of Wednesday since authorities are still “interviewing all involved subjects.” Fort Worth police also did not release any information on who shot Shin.
“As if there weren’t already unique traits with him [Shin], he’s one of the most altruistic guys,” Shin’s friend David Van told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on Wednesday. “When he found out one of his employees had a medical issue, he immediately enrolled everyone into a medical plan to get them cared for.”
Born in South Korea, Shin immigrated to the United States in 1983 at a young age. He reportedly grew up in various parts of Louisiana and North Carolina before settling in Texas. A graduate of Berkner High School in Richardson, Texas, Shin served in the Marine Corps and obtained his business degree from Western Governors University.
Shin was the owner of Encore Family Karaoke at Goodnight Lane in Dallas and was also the co-owner of the Dallas branch of Korean restaurant DanSungSa.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Shin reached out to Donny Sirisavath, his friend of almost 10 years and the chef behind Darkoo’s Chicken Shack, and proposed an idea involving a collaborative pop-up to help him and other people’s businesses survive the pandemic.
“On that day, he was like, ‘If you guys ever need help, I’m always here for you,’” Sirisavath told The Dallas Morning News. “He was never a selfish guy.”
Peng Dang, another friend of Shin from Arlington, recalled the time when Shin came to support him at a comedy show over a year ago.
“He came up to me and said, ‘Hey, I just saw your face on the poster, and to come out and support a fellow Asian,’” Dang told The Dallas Morning News. “He really felt we didn’t support our own in Dallas enough, and he wanted to change that. He was just a very kind person who had a really big heart for everybody.”
Dang also noted that he saw Shin the day before the tragic incident.
“He was very positive about the future when I saw him,” Dang said. “He was just starting to see the impact — that Korean culture is making waves in America and right here in Dallas. And he was very proud of it because he had been working on it for a long time.”
May Naing Joe, Shin’s former partner with whom he had a 14-year-old daughter named Ella, recalled how she also lost her father at a young age.
“I am broken that he was robbed of his life like this and Ella and I are robbed,” Joe said. “Ella is robbed of a father and all that she could have with him. I lost mine at age 12 to an accident, for Ella to have to repeat the curse is killing me.”
Joe added that she does not want the case to be pushed to the side as Shin’s family has become upset over the lack of details surrounding the fatal shooting.
“I don’t want his case to be shoved under a big pile of other cases, like just another road rage,” she said. “I don’t want that.”
Described by Dang as a “pillar” of Dallas’ Asian community, Shin raised money to help out during the aftermath of the May 11 Hair World Salon shooting, where three women of Korean descent were left injured. Following that incident, Shin said he planned to buy a third pistol to keep his staff, customers and fellow community members safe from harm.
David Van, Chi Lee and Panda Ken started a GoFundMe campaign on Wednesday to help with Shin’s funeral expenses. The campaign has raised over $54,000 of its $250,000 goal so far.
“Jin Shin was a fantastic human being,” Van, Lee and Ken wrote. “I use the word fantastic, because not only was it his favorite adjective to use, but it is also the best word to describe him.”
Featured Image via GoFundMe (left), FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth (right)
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