An unidentified gunman fatally shot a resettled Bhutanese, Mon Rai, an employee a St. Louis 7-Eleven store located on Gravois Avenue by Bates Street in south St. Louis Monday night on the job.
The medical attendants from the Barnes Jewish Hospital pronounced his death immediately after he was rescued from the scene by police. Rai is the 40th homicide victim in the city of St. Louis in 2013.
The Daily RFT reported that 30-year-old Rai was resettled through the International Institute of St. Louis in September last year. He was a father of an seven-year-old son Sujal, and his wife Sushila, 25, was expecting a second child this week.
According to the report, police arrived around 12:30 a.m. in response to a call from a customer who found Rai lying on the floor bleeding. Rai was taken to the hospital and soon after pronounced dead.
The suspect, who was reported to be wearing ‘dark clothing’, has been at large, and is being hunted.
Suzanne LeLaurin, senior vice president for individuals and families at the International Institute of St. Louis, was quoted by the Daily RFT as confirming that his wife was pregnant and was due to deliver in the next day or so.
She said, “The staff, as well as other clients, are just devastated.”
While another staff at the Institute said, “He was excited to contribute to his new country,” Barker says. “He was just one of those people that you know is going to succeed in this country. He has all of the tools, not just the language skills, but the personality, the positive attitude, the eagerness to contribute.”
Meanwhile, the institute has set up an account at Southern Commercial Bank for contributions to the family. Contributions can be sent to any Southern Commercial branch, and the account is listed as “Funds for Mon Rai Family.”
Aslo read : My journey from Bhutan to Nepal, and US
