Beloved family men identified as victims killed in FSU mass shooting: 'Living a nightmare'
The two victims killed Thursday in a mass shooting at Florida State University (FSU) have been identified as Robert Morales and Tiru Chabba, beloved family men and food service employees.
Morales and Chabba were among eight people wounded during the Tallahassee shooting just before noon. Hospital officials confirmed the six other victims are expected to make a full recovery.
Phoenix Ikner, 20, an FSU student and stepson of a Leon County Sheriff's Office deputy, has been identified by authorities as the suspect. He was shot by Tallahassee police officers after refusing to comply with commands.
Fsu Shooter Identified, Used Sheriff Deputy Mom's Weapon In Killing: Police
Leon High School's athletics department released a statement Friday confirming Morales' death, noting he was a former assistant football coach.
"Coach Morales was a beloved member of our athletic community and served as an assistant coach for Leon Football with dedication, integrity, and a true passion for mentoring young athletes," the school wrote in the statement. "His commitment to the game and to shaping the lives of his players extended far beyond the field."
Read On The Fox News App
The school added he was a "trusted coach, a respected colleague, and a cherished friend to many."
A GoFundMe has been created for Morales' family, raising more than $31,000 as of Friday afternoon.
It was created by friends of his wife, Betty Morales, according to the site.
"Robert leaves behind a wife and daughter," fundraiser organizers wrote. "We invite you to help us provide financial assistance to the Morales family as they navigate the road ahead."
Fsu Student: Everyone Started Running 'Suddenly'
Ricardo Morales Jr. shared family photos on X, remembering his younger brother.
"He loved his job at FSU and his beautiful Wife and Daughter," Ricardo Morales wrote in the post. "I'm glad you were in my Life. Him with our Dad on the left and with our other Brother Sister, Gma and cousin."
The Strom Law Firm, which is representing Chabba's family, confirmed his death in a news release provided to Fox News Digital Friday.
The 45-year-old father of two, from Greenville, South Carolina, was on the FSU campus working as an employee for a campus vendor, according to the release.
Fsu Shooting Suspect's Childhood Included Alleged Family Kidnapping Abroad, Custody Fight, Documents Say
He is survived by his wife and two children.
"Tiru Chabba's family is going through the unimaginable now," the firm wrote in the statement. "Instead of hiding Easter eggs and visiting with friends and family, they're living a nightmare where this loving father and devoted husband was stolen from them in an act of senseless and preventable violence. We ask you to keep his family in your thoughts and prayers as we fight to ensure they see justice that honors the memories of Mr. Chabba and all the victims of Thursday's shooting."
Florida State University Shooting Suspect: Who Is Phoenix Ikner?
Bakari Sellers, a national civil rights attorney with Strom Law, announced on X he and colleague Jim Bannister will represent the family in future legal proceedings.
"He was a husband and father whose life was tragically taken on the campus of Florida State University this week," Sellers wrote on X. "We are prayerful for a complete and thorough investigation and pray for all families affected."
Aramark Collegiate Hospitality, where Chabba worked as a regional vice president, confirmed the death of one of its employees to Fox News Digital.
"We are heartbroken to confirm that an Aramark employee was among those killed at FSU yesterday in that senseless act of violence," according to a statement from Aramark. "We are absolutely shaken by the news and our deepest sympathies are with the family and our entire Aramark community."
FSU canceled classes through Friday and athletic events through the weekend.
The university held a vigil for the victims early Friday evening at Langford Green in front of the Unconquered Statue.
Fox News' Greg Norman, Audrey Conklin, Rachel Wolf, Preston Mizell, David Spunt, Andrea Margolis, Ashley Papa, Pilar Arias and The Associated Press contributed to this report. Original article source: Beloved family men identified as victims killed in FSU mass shooting: 'Living a nightmare'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Southern California mother deported after immigration hearing
Loved ones are heartbroken after a Southern California mother was detained and deported after a routine immigration hearing. Maria Valeriano Perez, 52, is a mother of three children who has lived in the U.S. for 35 years. She had been working as a custodian in Ventura County for years. Her family said she attended an immigration appointment on June 4 and, instead of receiving an update on her case, she was immediately handcuffed and taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). She was transported to a federal detention center in downtown L.A. and was eventually deported to Oaxaca, Mexico. Maria's daughter, Erika Perez, said she was not only in shock over her mother's detainment, but also by the reportedly heartbreaking conditions her mother had witnessed. 'She told me about women inside banging doors, begging for food,' Erika told KTLA's Sandra Mitchell. 'They were so hungry that they would pretend they were drinking [and eating.]' Erika said her mother described the detention facility conditions as bleak — a place where men, women and children were crowded into a single room for processing. 'The women would crawl under benches and start crying just to escape the nightmare that they were going through,' Erika said. Kamilla Ponce, whose uncle was also detained by ICE, said he was not provided with much information during the process. 'They didn't even ask if they had papers or if they were documented or had proof of ID, they just rounded them all up,' Ponce said. Her uncle, Rodolfo Ponce Flores, was taken into custody during a raid in the Garment District in downtown L.A. on June 6. She said in just a few days, he had been moved to at least three different facilities across three different counties in SoCal. 'We tried to go see him, but they said, 'No,'' Ponce said. 'They were not letting anybody in, not even the lawyers.' Although Erika said her mother has accepted her fate that she may never gain U.S. citizenship, it doesn't change the effect her absence will have on her friends, loved ones and community members. 'She told me to take care of my siblings and that it's going to be okay,' Erika said of her last conversation with her mother before she was deported. 'I'm just devastated. She's gone now. She left me alone to raise my two other siblings.' Under a new policy from the Trump Administration, Maria would not be able to apply for re-admission into the U.S. for another 10 years. A GoFundMe page to help the Perez family can be found here. A campaign to help Ponce's uncle can be found here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Minneapolis mother witnesses tragic murder-suicide involving 2-year-old
The Brief Just after midnight Monday, 2-year-old Kinsley was shot and killed by her father. He then turned the gun on himself. Kinsley's mother, Trisha Prinsen, says her boyfriend struggled with mental health, but Sunday had a crisis and behavior she had never seen before. Prinsen says she and her daughter were held hostage in their own home, unable to call for help before the shooting. MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A Minneapolis mother is dealing with tragedy after her 2-year-old daughter was shot and killed by her father, who then turned the gun on himself. What we know Police were called to the family's home on the 2900 block of Colfax Avenue North just after midnight Monday. They arrived to find the 2-year-old girl and her father both deceased. Trisha Prinsen says she and her daughter were not allowed to leave the home, and essentially held hostage. Her boyfriend was armed and having a mental crisis. She was able to text two friends to call police, but nothing happened. She did not know you can text 911 for help. What they're saying Trisha Prinsen says although she is angry and sad, her daughter loved her father very much, and that she loved him too. Prinsen says, "I still love him. It's gonna take me a while to forgive him but I still love him." At the height of the crisis, Kinsley went to hug her father, and that's when he shot her and turned the gun on himself. This happened right in front of Prinsen. "Really he just went into a mental psychosis thought people were living under the house, people were watching him. I can't explain it. I couldn't understand where his thinking had gone, he had never been like this before." Prinsen said. Prinsen went onto say, "I'll never be able to take away the images losing her, watching him do that in front of me. I'll never be able to take those images out of my head." Big picture view Prinsen hopes by sharing her story, it will help to raise mental health awareness. She hopes if someone is going through a crisis, or a loved one is struggling they will go get help. She also wants to spread the word that you can text 911, as she didn't know that and it may have helped to prevent such a horrible tragedy. What you can do Trisha is hoping to get help for funeral expenses through a GoFundMe.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
Jailed Wisconsin Man Fooled ICE Barbie With Forged Death Threats Against Trump
A Milwaukee man awaiting trial on criminal robbery charges had an interesting defense strategy: framing one of his victims for threatening to murder President Trump. On Monday, Demetric D. Scott, 42, who was already in jail on charges of armed robbery and aggravated battery, was charged with witness intimidation, identity theft, and bail jumping after police discovered he'd forged several letters threatening the president's life under the name of Ramón Morales-Reyes. Scott admitted to police that he'd forged the letters not because he had any interest in harming the president, but because he'd hoped they would lead to the deportation of Morales-Reyes, who was set to testify at his upcoming robbery trial. Scott was arrested in 2023 after being captured on a Ring camera stabbing Morales-Reyes with a corkscrew while attempting to steal his bike, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported. The phony letters already made national headlines when DHS Secretary Kristi Noem publicly celebrated the arrest of Morales-Reyes, despite police quickly expressing suspicion that the letters had been forged. According to Milwaukee police, on May 21, the offices of the Wisconsin Attorney General, Milwaukee Police Chief, and Milwaukee ICE headquarters each received handwritten letters signed in Morales-Reyes' name and with his home listed as the return address, containing threats against the president's life. The letters read in part, 'I will self deport myself back to Mexico, but not before I use my 30 yard 6 [rifle] to shoot your precious president in his head—I will see him at one of his big ralleys.' The following day, on May 22, police arrested Morales-Reyes, 54. He was quickly transferred into DHS custody due to his undocumented status. The arrest earned praise from Noem, who wrote, 'Thanks to our ICE officers, this illegal alien who threatened to assassinate President Trump is behind bars.' However, Milwaukee police weren't certain they had the right man. Not only did a handwriting test quickly reveal that Morales-Reyes' penmanship didn't match the letters, but they also discovered he is not fluent in English. When asked if someone may have a motive to frame him for the crime, Morales-Reyes mentioned his plans to testify against Scott. Upon further investigation, police discovered that Scott had made explicit plans to forge and mail the letters in recorded jail phone calls dating back nearly a month, NBC News reported. In one call, made five days before the letters were received, Scott said, 'This dude is a goddamn illegal immigrant and they just need to pick his ass up… if he gets picked up by ICE, there won't be a jury trial, so they will probably dismiss it that day. That's my plan.' Since his arrest, Scott has had a pattern of mischievous letter-writing. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, in an August 2024 letter to Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Kristy Yang, the judge presiding over his case, Scott had threatened to turn her courtroom 'into a circus,' adding, 'This case will never make it to jury trial.' After Morales-Reyes identified Scott as a suspect in the forgery, police searched his jail cell, finding a pen matching the ink used in the letters, an envelope, and a note Scott had written reminding himself to find out the address of the attorney general's office. Scott eventually confessed during police questioning on May 30. However, Morales-Reyes remains in ICE custody at Dodge County Jail in Juneau, Wisconsin, and is now facing removal proceedings. Responding to initial reports that the letters were forged, a senior official from the Department of Homeland Security told The Daily Beast last week that Morales-Reyes will remain in custody because he was 'determined to be in the country illegally and [has] a criminal record.' According to a DHS press release, Morales-Reyes has previously been arrested for felony hit and run, criminal damage to property, and disorderly conduct with a domestic abuse modifier. The press release also claimed Morales-Reyes entered the U.S. illegally nine times between 1998 and 2005. Morales-Reyes' attorney, Kime Abduli, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that because he is still a witness in Scott's robbery trial, which is set for July 14, Morales-Reyes is in the process of applying for a U-visa, which allows undocumented immigrants to remain in the country if they are testifying in a criminal case.
