El Paso shooting victims: Young mother and six Mexican people named as victims of massacre

1/22
Olivia Tobin5 August 2019

A young mother, a nursing student and six Mexican people have been named among the victims of a mass shooting in El Paso.

The attack, which took place on Saturday, left 20 people dead and injured 26 more in what has been called “an act of cowardice” by US President Donald Trump.

Patrick Crusius, 21, from the city of Allen, near Dallas, was arrested at the scene and has since been charged with capital murder.

Police are investigating the possibility the shooting was a hate crime, and whether an anti-immigrant post written online shortly before the attack was penned by the man who was arrested.

AFP/Getty Images

Among the victims are Jordan Anchondo who “gave her life for her baby”.

The mother-of-three’s sister said she had apparently died while trying to protect her two-month-old son form the hail of bullets.

Mother-of-three Jordan Anchondo

Leta Jamrowski said: “From the baby’s injuries, they said that more than likely my sister was trying to shield him.

"So when she got shot she was holding him and she fell on him, so that’s why he broke some of his bones. So he pretty much lived because she gave her life.

Andre Achondo, Ms Achondo’s 23-year-old husband, was also named as one of the victims.

According to friends, Mr Achondo had recently turned his life around after struggles with drug dependence.

Leta Jamrowski said her sister had died in the attack 

Koteiba "Koti" Azzam, a friend of Mr Anchondo, said he had fond memories of him.

Mr Azzam said: “I love the guy. He had the character and the charisma."

Mr Azzam said Mr Anchondo had started a business in El Paso, building things from granite and stone, and made it successful through hard work. He also was on the verge of completing a home for his family.

US army veteran Arturo Benavides, 60, was killed as he stood paying for his groceries.

Mother-of-eight Angelina Enlisbee, 86, was also near the checkout when she was killed.

Elsa Mendoza de la Mora was reportedly shot when she went into Walmart to pick up some items.

Leonardo Campos, Gloria Marquez and Javier Rodriguez, 15, were also believed to have died.

Police in El Paso, Texas
AFP/Getty Images

Among those injured were couple Jessica Coca Garcia and Memo Garcia, who were at the Walmart in El Paso to raise funds for a youth sports team one of their children played on.

Norma Coca told Wichita, Kansas-television station KWCH that her daughter and son-in-law were near the front doors of the Walmart when they were shot.

She said Ms Garcia was shot three times in the leg, while Mr Garcis was shot twice in the leg and once in the back.

She said her daughter was in stable condition and her son-in-law was in critical condition.

REUTERS

Ms Garcia's father Don Coca said they have family in the El Paso area who were able to be with the couple.

He said: "She was just crying ... I told her that our prayers are there and we're on our way."

The couple's five-year-old son and 11-year-old daughter were also at the Walmart and were not shot.

A tribute is held for one of the victims
Getty Images

Mario de Alba, 45, had come to El Paso with his family from Mexico to go shopping.

Described by his sister Cristina de Alba as an "excellent father" and as a "decent, hardworking person," he was in serious condition Sunday after being shot in the back, the bullet exiting via his diaphragm.

Patrick Crusius, the suspect in the mass shooting in El Paso
EPA

His wife, Olivia Mariscal, and 10-year-old daughter Erika both appear to be recovering after also being wounded, de Alba said.

EPA

Other victims may have also been of Mexican descent, while one man who had traveled to El Paso from Mexico to buy school supplies for his daughter was among those severely wounded.

Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said: "For Mexico, this individual is a terrorist.”

He labelled the shooting as an “act of terrorism” against Mexicans and urged the US government to establish a “clear and convincing position against hate crimes.”

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in