FedEx shooting: Who were the Indianapolis victims, suspect? Why didn’t state ‘red flag’ law stop attack? What we know.
INDIANAPOLIS – After eight people were killed and several were injured when a gunman opened fire on workers at FedEx facility last week, the city is once again left to navigate tragedy and its third mass shooting in as many months.
The Thursday night shooting at the FedEx Ground Plainfield Operations Center came amid a string of deadly shooting attacks across the United States. Mass killings have claimed four or more American lives every week for the past six weeks, leaving 48 dead.
Police identified the shooter as a 19-year-old from Indianapolis and said the suspect killed himself inside the FedEx facility before police arrived shortly after the 11 p.m. rampage. No motive has been released in the shooting.
Here’s what we’ve learned about the shooting at FedEx.
Shooting raises questions about FedEx security
The shooting occurred during a shift change at the FedEx plant, and many workers were either just arriving to the facility or outside on break when the shooting began in the parking lot, workers told IndyStar, part of the USA TODAY Network.
Four victims were found outside the facility. Another four were found inside. The shooting has raised questions about the security of the building, and a number of family members of those killed have called on FedEx to reevaluate its security procedures.
“To FedEx — we want to know why is there no security at the gate?” asked Ramandeep Chohan at a vigil at Monument Circle Sunday. “Why was no one looking at the security footage while this was occurring? Why do you have more security to protect your merchandise than the people that actually work there?”
FedEx declined to say if the company is re-evaluating or changing its security measures.
The incident also raised immediate questions about FedEx’s no-phone policy, which left dozens of families early Friday morning waiting hours to hear news of their loved ones.
The company has said the policy aims to reduce distractions in the workplace. It has no plans to rescind the policy.
Who are the victims?
The eight people killed were mothers, grandmothers, sons, daughters and friends. One was a former student, another a volunteer for the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and another a sister and dog lover. Four were part of Indianapolis’ Sikh community.
Samaria Blackwell, 19, started working at FedEx about two months ago, according to a family friend. Blackwell dreamed of becoming a police officer.
Karli Smith, 19, was a sister and daughter. Smith’s family had last heard from her at 10:59 p.m. Thursday night, according to a Facebook post. They later learned that “she didn’t make it.”
Matthew Alexander, 32, was a former student at Butler University.
Amarjit Sekhon, 48, a mother of two, started working at the FedEx Plainfield Ground facility in November. The mother of two sons, ages 16 and 22, loved to work, her brother-in-law Kuldip Sekhon said.
Jasvinder Kaur, 50, was a mother of two who immigrated to the U.S. in 2018. She planned to celebrate her granddaughter’s second birthday Saturday.
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