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Tag: maryland shooting

  • Brianna Benlolo: Loved Ones Remember Mall Shooting Victim

    Among the three people killed on Saturday in a mall shooting in Columbia, Md., was 21-year-old Brianna Benlolo from College Park.

    The shooting that took place that day was a shock for shoppers who were present during the incident.

    However, it was the most disturbing for family and friends of Benlolo who were informed of the devastating news.

    Growing up in a military family, Benlolo moved often and resided in other states like Colorado before making her way to Maryland in 2010.

    Many remembered her as a hardworking “super mom” dedicated to providing for her 2-year-old son.

    Friends like Kaela Bugg described her as “an amazing person…. [who] had such a good head on her shoulders,” The Baltimore Sun reported.

    Her male friend, Abhishek Rishi, is still in disbelief that Benlolo was one of the victims that day. He immediately posted a Facebook status after hearing that the shooting took place at Zumiez skate store where his friend worked.

    “She never said anything bad about anybody” Rishi said. “She was just one of those people you wanted to be around. She was just genuinely happy.

    Benlolo was an assistant working manager at the skate store. According to how family and friends described her, she took pride in her work.

    “She was all excited because she was the manager there,” said her grandfather John Feins who also shared custody of Benlolo.

    Feins implied the disgust he felt towards his granddaughter’s senseless death, especially since some “idiot” took her life while she was attending to her usual day job.

    The other victim was identified as Benlolo’s co-worker, 25-year-old Tyler Johnson. Friends described him as a quiet but fun skater boy.

    It’s unclear what the motive behind the shooting was, but investigators say that it may be related to a domestic dispute.

    The gunman, who has been confirmed as 19-year-old Darion Aguilar, was said to not have any criminal history or signs of violence according to family.

    He took his own life following the fatal shooting.

    Benlolo and Johnson’s memorial page has reached over 6,000 likes since Saturday. A separate  Facebook page was also made over the weekend in memory of the young mother.

    Image via Facebook

  • Katy Perry Speaks Out About Recent Mass Shootings

    The shooting that took place inside of a suburban Maryland mall yesterday is part of a growing number of similar incidents that have been happening all over the United States, and they all seem to follow a similar pattern: The shooter has been relatively young–usually a teenager–they took place in either a mall or a school, and police have a hard time determining what the actual motive is.

    Back in 1999 when the tragic events unfolded at Columbine High School, and 13 people where shot and killed, it was huge news and most people couldn’t believe this kind of shooting could happen in an area not usually associated with crime.

    Today, things are different, as a new story of a mass shooting seems to be popping up on the news weekly, almost to the point where many of us have become extremely desensitized to the acts.

    And one celebrity who’s noticing that, and choosing to speak out about it is Katy Perry, as the pop star took to her Twitter page yesterday and asked her followers this question: “Is anyone else really sad about the constant stream of shootings and how normal it’s becoming to see these headlines on a weekly basis?” she wrote. “Scared to go to the mall? Scared to go to the movies? Me too. When will there be actual change? How many more?”

    Perry also tweeted a kind word to the victims, as well as their loved ones, and said the shootings are a true embarrassment for her. Although she didn’t specify exactly what she was embarrassed about, it’s pretty easy to gather she was talking about the U.S. and its politics surrounding gun control. “You and I both know this is getting embarrassing,” she tweeted. “My heart goes out to all the victims and their families this week. I pray for change.”

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Maryland Mall Shooting: Twitter Reports

    Maryland Mall Shooting: Twitter Reports

    Twitter is becoming THE source for news in breaking stories. In many cases, major news outlets get their news from Tweets and this has never been more apparent than in today’s coverage of the fatal mall shooting in Maryland.

    Three people have died and two others were injured after someone armed with a gun opened fire at the Mall in Columbia in suburban Baltimore on Saturday.

    The shooter is reported to be among the dead.

    According to reports a 911 call was placed at around 11:15 a.m. to report a shooting at the mall. When police arrived at the mall, they found three people, dead, including one person who was near the gun and ammunition allegedly used in the shooting. Police believe this person is the shooter, although the identities of the dead have been released pending notification to next of kin.

    The Howard County Police Department’s Twitter Updates have been riveting.

    At a news conference, Howard County Police Chief William J. McMahon said there was only one shooter.

    “We don’t know a motive yet,” McMahon said. “We are very confident that it was a single shooter, and there was not another shooter in the mall.”

    Image via Twitter

  • Shooting In Columbia Mall: 3 Dead Including Gunman

    Three people including the gunman have died in a shooting in Columbia Mall in Howard County, Maryland, Howard County Police said. The mall is planted in the center of the town, a suburb shared by both Washington and Baltimore.

    Police arrived on the scene after a call came in at 11:15 AM on Saturday that reported shots were fired. Three bodies were discovered with one located near a gun and ammunition. As of 12:30 PM, the police said that no additional information concerning addition shots heard were followed after the initial gunfire.

    According to CBS, customers were asked to remain inside stores as it was placed under lock-down and searched by police who were looking for the shooter.

    Both Howard County Fire and Emergency Management Services wrote in tweets that police and emergency personnel were on the scene. Both services urged people to avoid the area.

    Customers have been ushered out of the mall as police finalize securing the area and further investigate.

     

    According to NBC news, a security spokesman at the mall said that the mall was closed and the “situation may be over.” NBCWashington.com reported that a father whose daughter was in the mall told him on the phone that she was taking cover inside a Bank of America where dozens of others were hiding.

     

     

    Shots were fired from the J.C Penny outlet of the mall, according to Ari Ashe of WTOP.

    With helicopters buzzing overhead, Ashe said at least 100 police officers from Howard, Anne Arundel, and Montgomery Counties, as well as the Maryland State Police SWAT units and officers in fatigues were swarming the malls.

    “Most of the mall had been taped off… it is locked down fully.” Ashe said.

    A man who was having lunch with his family in the mall’s food court told WTOP that he heard four shots – “one shot, then two more, then a final one.” The people around him “huddled under a table” and then “booked it out of there.”

    The man suspects that the shooting happened in the mall’s lower level. “It was kind of surreal. You hear about it on TV and you don’t think you’re going to be a part of it.” He said.