A Young Woman From India Among 8 Killed in Outlet Mall Shooting in Dallas Suburb
- Aishwarya Thatikonda, 27, who was with a friend at the Allen Premium Outlets, was working for a contracting firm as a project engineer for the past two years.
A 27-year-old woman from Hyderabad was among the victims killed in the May 6 shooting at the Allen Premium Outlets in Texas. Aishwarya Thatikonda was with a friend at the outlet mall when the shooting occurred, a family representative told WFAA-TV Channel 8. She was working for Perfect General Contractors LLC, a Dallas-based contracting firm as a project engineer for the past two years.
She was among at least eight people killed in the shooting. While information about the victims is still trickling out in the wake of the shooting, Thatikonda and another victim — a young security guard — are the only two who were identified so far. The suspected gunman, Mauricio Garcia, was fatally shot by an officer at the scene.
Thatikonda’s friend, who was at the mall with her was injured in the shooting and is currently in a stable condition at a local hospital, news outlets reported.
Speaking to the Indian Express, a cousin described her as “a strong and independent woman.” Another cousin, advocate T. Srinivas Reddy, who practices at the Ranga Reddy District Court told the publication that Thatikonda had planned to go to that mall to purchase clothes and other items she wanted for the birthday. “She was looking forward to celebrating after a long time. She also told us a number of Indian students had decided to gather there on the weekend for a get-together, and the invite was circulated on social media.”
She had last visited India in December to attend her brother Srikanth’s wedding, Srinivas Reddy told The Indian Express. Her parents were also looking to fix her engagement by October, and get her married in December, her cousin said.
Thatikonda graduated with an undergraduate degree in civil engineering from Osmania University in 2018, before receiving a Master’s degree in construction management from Eastern Michigan University in 2020, her LinkedIn profile says.
Ashok Kolla of the Telugu Association of North America told CBS News that the organization is working to arrange the return of Thatikonda’s remains to India. The family is expecting the body to reach home by May 10, according to The Indian Express.
This awful tragedy, together with the brutal killing of an Indian student working in a gas station in the northwestern US, show that the US, for all its strengths and attractiveness, is also dangerous. And, so many thousands of Indians are just drooling to get a visa for the US, and eventually migrate there. They should do some serious thinking, before making a decision to leave India for the US. Just *think* a little, consider staying on in India( which is overall growing faster than most countries) . It’s absolutely dismaying, even a bit pathetic, how obtaining a visa to the US, is a major goal of far too many Indians in India. Think before you act!