‘We all hurt’: Neighbors mourn girls, elder killed in Sacramento church shooting
The anguish was too much for Anglyn Armstrong. She didn’t know Samia, Samantha and Samarah Mora Gutierrez, but she was overwhelmed with grief after learning how the sisters died at a church down the street from Armstrong’s home.
“It’s really unbearable that these little girls lost their lives like this.” Armstrong said.
Samia, 13, Samantha, 10, and Samarah, 9, were shot and killed by their father Monday during a supervised visit at The Church on Wyda Way in Arden Arcade. Authorities said the gunman, Sacramento resident David Mora, also shot and killed Nathaniel Kong, a family friend tasked with supervising Mora’s visit with his daughters at the church.
Armstrong and about a few dozen other neighbors gathered Tuesday night outside the church for a candlelight vigil to share their grief and offer prayers for the four victims and their families. The girls didn’t live nearby, but neighbors felt they had to come together.
“It’s our neighborhood. When one hurts, we all hurt,” said Armstrong, who brought along her grandchildren and placed balloons at a makeshift memorial right outside the church’s front gate.
Mora, who also is identified in court documents as David Fidel Mora-Rojas, was the subject of a temporary restraining order issued in April 2021 that prohibited him from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Law enforcement sources said Tuesday they still had not determined when and how Mora obtained the assault weapon used in the shooting.
Kim Gibson has lived in the neighborhood near the church for nearly 20 years and felt compelled to attend Tuesday’s candlelight vigil.
“I am a survivor of domestic violence. Thank God I didn’t have any children involved,” Gibson said. “It’s beyond devastating for me. All those candles should be on a birthday cake for the young lady; not for this.”
Gibson spoke about Samantha, whose 11th birthday would have been Wednesday. Gibson said the deaths of these four people reveals how restraining orders are simply a “paper trail” for authorities after a violent attack occurs, and the court orders do very little to protect domestic violence victims or prevent mass shootings like this one in Sacramento County.
“Unfortunately, these people were all victims of this broken system,” Gibson said. “This church has been a part of the community for a long time. It’s been a very peaceful place. And the church was trying to help them.”
The Church’s written statement
Kong, 59, of Carmichael reportedly was supervising the court-ordered visit with the children when he was killed. Kong is listed online as one of the church’s elders. The church and its members did not participate in the vigil, but elder Hugh Pforsich released a written statement Tuesday evening.
Church elders said they were “shocked and saddened” by the shooting in their church meeting hall that ended in the death of five of its members.
“Our church body is devastated and heartbroken by this senseless tragedy, and we ask for continued prayer for the victims, their family and our faith community as we grapple with this unexpected loss and trust the Lord for His strength in our grief,” the church elders wrote.
They said they continue to cooperate with the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office in the shooting investigation and they are doing everything possible to offer comfort to the congregation.
The Sacramento County Coroner’s Office on Tuesday released the names of the five people who died in the church shooting. Coroner officials identified the three girls as Woodland residents, but they attended school in the Natomas Unified School District. Two of the girls went to Bannon Creek School, and the other attended Leroy Greene Academy.
“It really touched my heart, that they were very young and one of them was close to my age. It’s very sad,” said 13-year-old Kayla Mendoza, who lives not far from the church and helped organize the vigil.
Yadira Ortega has lived across the street from the Arden Arcade church for more than 10 years. She heard the gunfire Monday evening as she and her two children were at their front gate. Ortega said she saw several law enforcement officials carrying one of their wounded girls out of the church and attempt life-saving measures before she died.
Ortega also helped organize the candlelight vigil, inviting anyone who wanted to attend the impromptu event to mourn together and show their support for the victims and their families.
“It’s hard for me, because I am a mother, as well, of a 9-year-old and a six-year-old,” Ortega told the vigil attendees. “But I just want to thank you guys for being here for the family. The little girls did not deserve this, and we know that.”
This story was originally published March 2, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
