Columbia Maryland; is just a short drive from the Southern York County School District where students and staff have commuted to the mall in the past, but to many people’s surprise on Saturday, January 25 two lives were taken in the mall, 25 year old Tyler Johnson and 21 year old Brianna Benlolo.
Spanish teacher Heather Walker expresses her empathy toward the two.
“They didn’t deserve that. Nobody deserves to be killed,” said Walker. ”They had their whole life ahead of them.”
Shooter Darion Aquilar left his house around 5:15 a.m. the morning he committed the shooting, there was a five hour gap of time between the shots fired when he left his home. All police know is he arrived via taxi at the mall around 10:15 am and that he entered the mall with a disassembled shotgun and explosives. He walked into the Zumiez store where Benlolo and Johnson worked and went into the dressing room in the back. He assembled the shotgun and walked out. After killing both Johnson and Benlolo, he fled the store, shooting one more woman in the foot and then took his own life.
Junior Sierra Clary, who regularly commutes to the Columbia Mall expresses her opinion about the shooter.
“ I believe that it was jealousy that drove him over the edge,” said Clary.”I think Benlolo was his girlfriend, and they had a bad breakup to send him over the edge.”
After investigating the situation, the police found a journal that Alquilar had been writing in for years about killing people. The investigation still continues today, but recently the police discovered that Alquilar bought the shotgun for 430 dollars at a gun store in Rockville months before the shooting. Police are still questioning if the shotgun was bought for the sole purpose of slaughtering Benlolo and Johnson.
Junior Alex Rohrbaugh shares his mindset on mall shootings.
“It shouldn’t be that easy for someone to walk in a public place and kill” said Rohrbaugh.” Mall security should step up their game big time.”
The mall was closed Sunday for investigation and opened back up for business Monday morning.
