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North Texans grieved Sunday in the aftermath of gunfire that killed eight people and wounded seven others at an Allen mall — leaving the community to grapple with the second-deadliest mass shooting in the United States this year.
Just after 3:30 p.m. Saturday, police said an officer who was nearby on an unrelated call heard gunfire at Allen Premium Outlets in the 800 block of West Stacy Road, near U.S. Highway 75.
According to police, the officer “engaged the suspect and neutralized the threat” and then called for emergency responders. The shooter, who police said acted alone, was one of seven people declared dead on scene.
Nine additional victims were taken to hospitals, where two of them later died. Three of the seven remaining wounded victims were in critical condition, and four were stable, police said Saturday.
Here’s what we know about the lives lost.
Christian LaCur, 20
Christian LaCour, a 20-year-old Farmersville resident, was one of the eight people killed, a family member confirmed Sunday.
The relative told that LaCour was “a sweet caring young man who was loved greatly by [their] family.” Multiple social media posts said LaCour was a security guard.
“He was such a beautiful soul, 20 years old with goals for his future,” one post said. “I was so proud of him.”
“Words cannot even begin to describe the devastation that our family feels,” another post read. “There will forever be a void.”
Aishwarya Thatikonda, 27
A family representative has confirmed to WFAA that Aishwarya Thatikonda was one of the victims killed in the shooting in Allen, Texas.
She was an engineer, and her family lives in India.
More: https://t.co/qqfJIPnLt1 pic.twitter.com/UDBNhsEHZS
— WFAA (@wfaa) May 8, 2023
Aishwarya Thatikonda, a project engineer from India, died in the shooting, according to multiple media reports.
The Times of India reported Thatikonda, 27, was from Hyderabad and her family was working to have her body brought back home.
According to her LinkedIn, Thatikonda worked in Dallas as a project engineer at Perfect General Contractors LLC. She lived in McKinney.
A man who was with Thatikonda at the time of the shooting was also injured, the outlet reported. It was unclear what condition he was in as of Monday.