Families gather to remember victims of El Paso shooting

EL PASO, Texas–Families of those killed when a gunman opened fire at an El Paso Walmart are gathering at funerals on each side of the U.S.-Mexico border to remember loved ones whose lives told the story of the vibrant region.

The 22 people killed ranged in age from 15 to 90, and included citizens of Mexico and the U.S. Many had deep ties in each country, with family on each side of the border and routines that included crossing the border to shop.


The funeral for 66-year-old Alexander Hoffmann Roth was held Friday afternoon in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, located just across the border from El Paso. Born in postwar Germany, he was serving in the German air force and stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso when he crossed the border into Ciudad Juarez and met the Mexican citizen who would become his wife at a dance club.

“It’s an incredible binational place. I’ve had so many good memories in this area from Juarez and El Paso … the people, the food, the music, the ambiance, everything, everything is so warm,” said his daughter, Elise Hoffmann-Taus. “And this, this really hurts.”

Her father, she said, mindful of what had happened in his native country, would often talk about the importance of studying history and warned about the danger of letting hate enter one’s heart. He had crossed the border from his home in Ciudad Juarez on Aug. 3 to pick up groceries and medicine when he was killed.

She said that the long wait times to cross the border had made it harder as she tried to gather information about her father. The border waits have ballooned in recent months.

On Thursday in El Paso, a memorial service was held for 41-year-old Leonardo “Leo” Campos, who was killed along with his wife. Leo Campos grew up in the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas but had in recent years moved to El Paso.


“He would always tell me stories about the scenic view and the culture. That it was really different up here,” his brother, David Campos, who lives in San Juan, Texas, told the El Paso Times.

David Campos said he was heartened to know his brother had made so many friends in El Paso. Visiting the city for the first time for his brother’s service, David Campos made an observation: “El Paso is just a united city; no matter what has happened, it’s united.”

The service for 15-year-old Javier Amir Rodriguez is set for Saturday at an El Paso church. The teen, who was starting his sophomore year in high school, was at the Walmart with his uncle when he was killed. The avid soccer player was remembered as a fun-loving teen who was a good teammate during a vigil held Monday at the Horizon High School football stadium in El Paso.

The funeral was Friday in El Paso for 77-year-old Juan Velazquez. He and his wife, Nicholasa Velazquez, were shot Saturday after parking their car at the Walmart. She was injured and he died Monday.


Cruz Velazquez told The New York Times that his father, who was born in the Mexican state of Zacatecas, moved first to Ciudad Juarez and then to Denver, where he lived for 30 years. He eventually moved to El Paso because it was peaceful.

“He fought to get ahead in the United States,” said Cruz Velazquez, who said his father had become a U.S. citizen. /jpv

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Tensions rise over burials of New Zealand shooting victims

CHRISTCHURCH — The first bodies from the Christchurch mosque massacres were due to be released late Sunday amid growing frustration from victims’ families over delays in getting their remains for burial

Islamic custom dictates that the deceased should be buried within 24 hours, but authorities said the complex investigation into the massacre of 50 worshippers during Friday prayers made a quick process difficult.

New Zealand officials said at least one body would be returned Sunday night, and that all 50 should be back with their families by Wednesday.

“It’s a massacre, what else do they need to know?,” Sheikh Amjad Ali, an assistant school principal who had travelled from Auckland to help with the funeral arrangements, told AFP about some frustrations with the wait.

“The families are sad but they are getting a bit frustrated. The reasons of their deaths are known … why not release those who have been identified,” he said.

“I’m not going to talk against authorities because they have their own rules and regulations, but they are balancing between the culture and religious views and the local laws.”

Ali said it was difficult for relatives to know that the bodies had been lying in the mosques for more than a day.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said a “small number” of bodies would be returned to families from Sunday evening.

“It is the expectation that all bodies will be returned to families by Wednesday,” she told reporters, adding that six disaster recognition experts from Australia were helping out with the identification process.


Police Deputy Commissioner Wally Haumaha said the attacks were “totally unprecedented in our history” but that his officers were “working very hard” to support the families.

“Our sole focus is to get their loved ones back and to follow the cultural traditions such as the washing and shrouding of their loved ones, and we have made premises available to carry out these sensitive cultural issues,” he said.

Chief Coroner Judge Deborah Marshall added that every precaution needed to be taken to avoid any errors.

“There could be nothing worse than giving the wrong body to the wrong family,” she said.

Earlier, Pakistan’s High Commissioner to New Zealand, Abdul Malik, told AFP that six Pakistani nationals were confirmed among the dead and three nationals remained missing.

At least two families had also requested that the bodies of their loved ones be repatriated to Pakistan, a  process that could take up to 10 days, he said.

“The Muslim tradition is that the body should be buried as early as possible. But this is not a normal circumstance,” he added.

Outside a meeting between authorities and victims’ relatives about the burial arrangements, a large group of Bangladeshis held up signs with the words “Please help us find Zakaria Bhuiyan” and “How long do we have to wait now?”

“They are not telling us anything,” Bhuiyan’s friend Kaniz Fatima told AFP, adding that the 30-year-old’s name was not on a preliminary list of victims given to families late Saturday.

He was believed in the Al Noor mosque near Hedley Park at the time of the shootings.

“We want some confirmation that he is dead, alive or in emergency. We have been waiting here for the last two days and some have not eaten or slept.

“We understand these procedures take time. But at least give us a time frame,” she pleaded.

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Florida nightclub attack just the latest US mass shooting

A GUNMAN took hostages and opened fire inside a crowded gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, early Sunday morning, killing approximately 20 people and wounding 42 others before SWAT officers killed him, authorities said. Police Chief John Mina said the shooter had an assault-style rifle, a handgun and a “suspicious device” with him during the attack, which is being investigated as an act of terrorism.

Here’s a look at some of the nation’s deadliest rampages since 2012:

— Feb. 25, 2016: Cedric Ford, 38, killed three people and wounded 14 others lawnmower factory where he worked in the central Kansas community of Hesston. The local police chief killed him during a shootout with 200 to 300 workers still in the building, authorities said.

— Feb. 20, 2016: Jason Dalton, 45, is accused of randomly shooting and killing six people and severely wounding two others during a series of attacks over several hours in the Kalamazoo, Michigan, area. Authorities say he paused between shootings to make money as an Uber driver. He faces murder and attempted murder charges.

— Dec. 2, 2015: Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, and Tashfeen Malik, 27, opened fire at a social services center in San Bernardino, California, killing 14 people and wounding more than 20. They fled the scene but died hours later in a shootout with police.

— Oct. 1, 2015: A shooting at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, left 10 people dead and seven wounded. Shooter Christopher Harper-Mercer, 26, exchanged gunfire with police, then killed himself.

— June 17, 2015: Dylann Roof, 21, shot and killed nine African-American church members during a Bible study group inside the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina. Police contend the attack was racially motivated. Roof faces nine counts of murder in state court and dozens of federal charges, including hate crimes.

— May 23, 2014: A community college student, Elliot Rodger, 22, killed six people and wounded 13 in shooting and stabbing attacks in the area near the University of California, Santa Barbara, campus. Authorities said he apparently shot himself to death after a gunbattle with deputies.

— Sept. 16, 2013: Aaron Alexis, a mentally disturbed civilian contractor, shot 12 people to death at the Washington Navy Yard before he was killed in a police shootout.

— July 26, 2013: Pedro Vargas, 42, went on a shooting rampage at his Hialeah, Florida, apartment building, gunning down six people before officers fatally shot him.

— Dec. 14, 2012: In Newtown, Connecticut, an armed 20-year-old man entered Sandy Hook Elementary School and used a semi-automatic rifle to kill 26 people, including 20 first graders and six adult school staff members. He then killed himself.

— Sept. 27, 2012: In Minnesota’s deadliest workplace rampage, Andrew Engeldinger, who had just been fired, pulled a gun and fatally shot six people, including the company’s founder. He also wounded two others at Accent Signage Systems in Minneapolis before taking his own life.

— Aug. 5, 2012: In Oak Creek, Wisconsin, 40-year-old gunman Wade Michael Page killed six worshippers at a Sikh Temple before killing himself.

— July 20, 2012: James Holmes, 27, fatally shot 12 people and injured 70 in an Aurora, Colorado, movie theater. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

— April 2, 2012: Seven people were killed and three were wounded when a 43-year-old former student opened fire at Oikos University in Oakland, California. One Goh was charged with seven counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder, but psychiatric evaluations concluded he suffered from long-term paranoid schizophrenia and was unfit to stand trial.

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net