A 20-year-old security guard and an engineer who moved to the US from India were identified as two of the eight people fatally shot at a Texas mall Saturday.
Christian LaCour, of Farmersville, was on the job and Aishwarya Thatikonda, of McKinney, was shopping with a friend when they were both killed at the Allen Premium Outlets after gunman Mauricio Garcia began shooting, according to local reports.
Sandra Montgomery, LaCour’s grandmother, mourned the loss of her “beautiful grandson” while confirming he was among the fatalities.
The young man’s family members became terrified when they couldn’t reach him after Saturday’s bloodbath.
“Christian LaCour, was the security guard killed in the shooting at Allen Texas,” Montgomery wrote on Facebook. “He was such a beautiful soul, 20 years old with goals for his future.
“I was so proud of him and so glad I got to see him two weeks ago.”
Kellie Smith, the mother of LaCour’s sister-in-law, said the whole family is devastated over the young man’s death, describing him as a “sweet young boy” who grew up into a “very sweet gentleman.”
“Words can not even begin to describe the devastation that our family feels,” Smith wrote. “Their will forever be a void.”
Meanwhile, a family representative confirmed to WFAA that Thatikonda was also among the dead from the senseless gun violence.
She was an engineer living and working in Texas while her family was in India, the station reported.
She was with a friend at the outlet mall when the shots rang out, the family rep said. Her friend was injured, but is in stable condition at the hospital.
Her family planned to bring her body back to India, the representative said.
She was working in Dallas as a project engineer for more than two years before her tragic death, according to her LinkedIn profile.
What we know about Texas mall shooter Mauricio Garcia
The gunman who killed eight people and injured seven others before being shot dead by police at a Texas outlet mall has been identified as Mauricio Garcia, 33.
A look into Garcia’s past revealed:
- He served in the Army in 2008 but was eventually “removed due to mental health concerns,” law enforcement sources told local ABC 30.
- Garcia had undergone several firearms proficiency courses in 2015 and 2018 as part of his security guard work
- Investigators began probing whether Garcia held neo-Nazi views after police found a patch on his chest with the acronym “RWDS,” which stands for “Right Wing Death Squad”
- Garcia also appeared to be casing his target for weeks. He shared more than two dozen photos of the outlets on extremist forums in the weeks leading up to his mass shooting, seemingly determining what would be the most packed time at the mall to unleash the greatest carnage, NBC said.
- The mass shooter alluded to his declining mental health, too. One of his final posts lamented that no psychologist would be able to fix him and his fears of what his family might say about him.
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In a statement about the shooting, the mall said, “We are horrified by the senseless tragedy at Allen Premium Outlets and are outraged by the violence that continues to plague our country.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families and others affected by this heinous act. We are thankful for the Allen Police Officer’s heroic actions and for the support of all the first responders.”
Shocking footage from the mall’s parking lot showed a man stepping out of a gray sedan dressed in black tactical gear and armed with an AR-15-style rifle before opening fire on shoppers in Allen, about 25 minutes north of Dallas.
Six of those killed outside the mall were pronounced dead at the scene.
Nine other victims were hospitalized, including two who later died of their wounds, Allen Fire Chief Jonathan Boyd said.
Garcia, 33, was shot and killed by an officer who was patrolling the area.
A Dallas home linked to Garcia’s parents was searched by police Saturday night after the massacre, and officials also scoured a motel where the shooter had booked an extended stay, law enforcement sources told local outlet WFAA-TV.
Officials are investigating whether Garcia held radical beliefs that may have helped lead to the mass shooting, after he was found wearing a patch on his chest that suggested white supremacist or neo-Nazi leanings, according to the Washington Post.
The patch had the acronym “RWDS” which stands for “Right Wing Death Squad,” an official who spoke on condition of anonymity told the Associated Press.
The official also said federal agents are reviewing social media accounts they think belonged to Garcia that expressed an interest in white supremacist and neo-Nazi views.
An emotional vigil was held for the slain victims Sunday evening.
With Post wires
