Process under way to send home mortal remains of Indian engineer killed in US mall shooting

Houston, May 9

The Indian Consulate here has said it is helping the family of 26-year-old Aishwarya Thatikonda, who was killed in Saturday’s shooting at the Texas Mall, in facilitating the completion of requisite formalities to bring back her mortal remains and also confirmed that two Indians were also injured in the tragic incident.

Aishwarya, 26, of McKinney, was shopping with a friend when they were shot by gunman Mauricio Garcia at the Allen Premium Outlets in Dallas.

The shooting erupted around 3.30 pm on Saturday as throngs of shoppers filled the outdoor mall. The shooting killed at least eight people before Mauricio Garcia, a 33-year-old gunman, was shot dead by a police officer.

Aishwarya, the daughter of a district judge in Ranga Reddy district court in India, worked as a project engineer at Perfect General Contractors LLC.

Indian Consulate in Houston is in touch with the families of Aishwarya and other two Indian nationals, who were injured in the shooting.

Aseem Mahajan, Consul General of India in Houston, told PTI that they are helping Aishwarya’s family in facilitating the completion of requisite formalities related to the mortal remains of the deceased.

“Two other Indian nationals have been injured in the tragic shooting incident. We are in constant touch with the local and hospital authorities, relatives of the injured and community leaders,” Mahajan said.

According to sources, one of them is in critical condition.

Consulate officials are in Dallas to render all possible assistance.

According to Srinivas Chaluvadi, Aishwarya’s supervisor, she was loved and adored by all, “not because she was killed under tragic circumstances, but because of who she was personally”.     

She would have turned 27 on May 18, and his family was planning a birthday party for her. She wanted to buy her an outfit – he believes she was shopping for it on Saturday when she was killed.

Ashok Kolla, leader of the Telugu Association of North America, is working to arrange the return of Thatikonda’s remains to India.

Other victims include a young family and two primary school-going sisters.

Seven others injured with multiple gunshot wounds are still in the hospital.

The crime is still being investigated as more information becomes known about the people who died at the Allen Premium Outlets mall.