US: Hyderabad woman dies in Texas mall shooting

The Indian consulate in Houston said on Monday, that one of the eight victims of the Texas mall shooting over the weekend was Thatikonda, an Indian civil engineer from Telangana.

The Indian Consulate in Houston said: “We express our deep condolences to the family of Ms. Aishwarya Thatikonda who died in the tragic shooting incident in Allen, Texas on May 6."

“We are in touch with the family of the deceased as well as the local authorities. Our officers are on the ground to render all possible assistance. We are closely monitoring the situation," the Consulate said.

Thatikonda was shopping at the Allen Outlet mall for her upcoming 28th birthday.

According to reports, her family plans to have her body sent to India.

Thatikonda was in the US on a work visa, and was employed at a Frisco-based general contractor.

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

Mauricio Garcia, 33, was identified as the shooter who drove to the Allen Premium Outlets on Saturday afternoon and opened fire on innocent shoppers with an AR-15-style rifle.

He was shot and killed by a police officer who was nearby responding to an unrelated call.

Police are now investigating whether the attacker was motivated by right-wing extremist ideology.

(With UNI inputs)