Police identifies 9 victims of San Jose shooting

The nine victims of a mass shooting Wednesday in San Jose have been identified as investigators begin the process of finding out why such violent violence took place in the early hours of the morning at a light railroad. Eight of the victims, ranging in age from 29 to 63, were identified on Wednesday by the medical examiner's Santa Clara County office as Paul Delacruz Megia, 42; Taptejdeep Singh, 36; Adrian Balleza, 29; Jose Dejesus Hernandez III, 35; Timothy Michael Romo, 49; Michael Joseph Rudometkin, 40; Abdolvahab Alaghmandan, 63; and Lars Kepler Lane, 63.

A ninth victim, Alex Ward Fritch, 49, was transported to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in critical condition and died on Wednesday night.

They will be honored Thursday night during an event at the San Jose City Hall Plaza. Among the victims was the accomplice of the gunman at the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA). The VTA is a public transportation service that operates bus and light rail services in the Santa Clara Valley and employs approximately 2,000 employees.

Michael Joseph Rudometkin, right, was remembered in a Facebook post by San Jose councillor Raul Peralez. He described himself as a 'long time great friend'.

The incident Wednesday was the 232nd shooting in which an average of four people have been shot in the US so far this year, according to a version of the Gun Violence Archive, because another community was left behind to grasp violence that struck near the home.

The killings in San Jose are the latest in a wave of shootings that have hit essential workers in the US, who tried to stay safe during the Covid-19 pandemic but were still killed in major acts of violence.

According to Deputy Attorney Russell Davis of the Santa Clara County Sheriff, investigators, like other previous cases, are investigating the motive of the gunman.

One thing that has become clear is that 'the victims and all the colleagues knew the shooter well,' Mayor Sam Liccardo told media.