Saturday, July 12, 2025
spot_img

Gunman’s mother apologizes to victims

Date:

Share post:

spot_imgspot_img

Shooting at US Navy yard

WASHINGTON: The mother of Washington Navy Yard gunman Aaron Alexis apologized to the victims today, and like his friends and colleagues she was unable to offer clues on his motive for the shooting.

‘I don’t know why he did what he did, and I’ll never be able to ask him why. Aaron is now in a place where he can never do harm to anyone, and for that I am glad,’ Cathleen Alexis said in an audio statement aired on MSNBC from her home in New York. ‘To the families of the victims, I am so, so very sorry that this has happened. My heart is broken.’

All 12 victims, aged 46 to 73, were civilians caught up in the shooting spree on Monday morning by the former Navy reservist who was working as an information technology contractor at the military installation.

Alexis was killed in a gun battle with police officers.

As investigators tried to find out what set off Alexis, 34, US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel acknowledged there were ‘red flags’ before Alexis received security clearance to work at the complex despite having a history of misconduct and mental health problems.

‘Obviously when you go back in hindsight and look at all this, there were some red flags – of course there were,’ Hagel told a news conference. ‘And should we have picked them up? Why didn’t we? How could we have? All those questions need to be answered.’

Alexis had ‘secret’-level security clearance and entered the military installation with a valid pass.

Outside of Washington, coffee chain Starbucks Corp asked US customers to leave their guns at home after being dragged into an increasingly fractious debate over gun rights.

In a letter and a video presentation, Chief Executive Howard Schultz said the request was not a ban and not in response to the Navy Yard shooting, but nonetheless called it a ‘timely message.’ (Reuters)

spot_imgspot_img

Related articles

Air India plane crash: Pilots’ union seeks to join AAIB probe as observer

New Delhi, July 12: The Airline Pilots’ Association of India (ALPA) on Saturday raised concerns over the preliminary...

UK faces third, more extensive heatwave

London, July 12: The United Kingdom is bracing for its third heatwave of the year, with exceptionally hot...

Union Minister Jual Oram announces retirement from electoral politics

Sambalpur (Odisha), July 12:  In a major development for Odisha politics, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs and senior...

IIM-Calcutta rape case: Questions raised over campus security

Kolkata, July 12: Serious concerns have emerged over the security arrangements at the Indian Institute of Management-Calcutta (IIM-C),...