A mother from Utah, suspected to have been murdered by her husband along with three of their children, was a refugee who escaped violence in Myanmar, according to family members who spoke on Thursday.
Authorities suspect that the husband took the lives of his family before turning the gun on himself; however, their teenage son survived with severe injuries.
The deceased include 38-year-old Bu Meh, alongside her daughters, 8-year-old Kristina Ree, 2-year-old Nyay Meh, and 11-year-old Boe Reh. Their bodies were discovered on Tuesday within their residence in West Valley City, a suburb of Salt Lake City. A handgun was located under the body of the father, Dae Reh, aged 42, leading investigators to believe the incident was a murder-suicide. As of now, no motive has been revealed.
Among them, 17-year-old Sha Reh managed to survive despite being shot in the head and is currently hospitalized with a serious brain injury, as stated by law enforcement.
Bu Meh was part of the Karenni ethnic minority from Myanmar, having fled what her family describes as ethnic cleansing around a decade ago. Initially, she spent time in a refugee camp located in Thailand before arriving in the United States with minimal belongings. Her family highlighted her determination to create a better life, noting that she learned English and new skills to help support her family while building a life significantly better than what she had experienced in her homeland and the refugee camp.
“In a way that we cannot understand, her husband stripped her and their children of their safety and their very existence,” the family expressed in a statement.
Authorities suspect that the tragic shooting took place over the weekend. They initially visited the home on Monday evening after a family member requested they perform a welfare check, but they found no immediate signs of trouble. It wasn’t until Tuesday, when a relative came by, that they discovered Sha Reh injured in the garage and alerted the police, who subsequently found the bodies inside.
Relatives referred to Sha Reh as their hero and indicated that he faces a long and challenging path to recovery. An online fundraising campaign has been established to assist with his medical care and to help support his college education.
Local residents did not report hearing any gunfire over the weekend, according to police spokesperson Roxeanne Vainuku, who addressed the media on Wednesday. Additionally, the family had not previously been involved in any reported incidents of domestic violence or disturbances.
This incident marks the 38th mass killing in the United States so far this year. At least 165 individuals have lost their lives in mass killings within the country in 2023, which the FBI defines as events where four or more people die within a 24-hour period, excluding the perpetrator.