Inset: Ashley Garibay (Facebook). Background: News footage of the In-N-Out location in Twin Falls, Idaho, where a mass shooting took place (CBS News).
One of the three people killed during Saturday’s mass shooting at an Idaho In-N-Out restaurant came from another state to train new employees.
Ashley Garibay, 23, was an associate at an In-N-Out location in Stockton, California, and had traveled to train employees at the Twin Falls, Idaho, restaurant that had just opened on July 24. On Saturday, she was killed along with two other victims by 24-year-old Chad Williams, who then turned the gun on himself, according to the Twin Falls Police Department. Garibay’s family came forward and identified their loved one after her father returned from Mexico on Monday.
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In a press release the day after the shooting, Twin Falls police said first responders rushed to the In-N-Out location after several callers reported a shooting via 911 around 2:30 p.m. on Saturday. Police said that before Williams took his own life, “an off-duty state trooper and a citizen returned gunfire toward the suspect,” which drove him away from the scene.
While police said they are still seeking tips and have not yet determined a motive, they said, “Investigators are confident the suspect acted alone.”
Lynsi Snyder, the owner of In-N-Out, posted a statement on social media after midnight on Sunday. “We lost one of our beautiful Associates tonight,” Snyder wrote. “She was taking care of our most important asset — our Customers, and her life was taken by a disgusting human who doesn’t value the lives of others or his own.”
Garibay’s family provided a statement to Sacramento, California-based NBC affiliate KCRA, which read, “We are heartbroken and devastated by the loss of Ashley — a devoted daughter, sister, auntie, cousin and friend — whose life was taken from us far too soon. … In-N-Out Burger was Ashley’s first job, and she fell in love with it. She proudly traveled to open new stores, and her dream was to one day manage an In-N-Out store. She was passionate about serving Customers and left this world doing what she loved to do.”
The Garibay family added, “We are grateful for the In-N-Out Associates, first responders and those nearby who rushed to Ashley’s aid to comfort her in her final moments on earth.”
Christopher “Toph” Claunch (Facebook).
Also killed was 59-year-old Christopher “Toph” Claunch, whose family identified him to CBS News. Garren Taylor, a spokesperson for Claunch’s family, told NBC News that the California native moved to Rupert, Idaho, while recovering at a treatment center there. After he achieved sobriety, the center wanted him to work there to help others do the same, which he did. Taylor told NBC News, “His big, open, giving heart, he was able to help so many people in a short amount of time in those two years.”
The name of the third deceased victim has not been released. Police said seven victims were injured; two were treated and released, three were in stable condition, and two were in critical condition.
Police are still seeking information about the shooting and have set up a tip line with the FBI.
The post In-N-Out shooter killed 23-year-old who traveled from out of state to train workers at a new location, her family says first appeared on Law & Crime.
