Arthur Folasa Ah Lavatory, a 39-year-old former contestant on the style design competitors sequence Challenge Runway, died Saturday after being struck by gunfire whereas attending a “No Kings” demonstration in downtown Salt Lake Metropolis.
Salt Lake Metropolis Police confirmed his demise and supplied particulars of what transpired by referring to Ah Lavatory as an “harmless bystander” who was not the meant goal of the gunfire. “Our ideas are with the household and pals of the 39-year-old man who was killed and with the various group members who have been impacted by this traumatic incident,” Salt Lake Metropolis Police Division chief Brian Redd stated in a statement, including that the response of the officers and detectives was “quick, courageous and extremely coordinated” when the capturing broke out.
Per the police, Ah Lavatory was among the many estimated 10,000 contributors of a permitted demonstration that occurred in Salt Lake to protest President Donald Trump and his insurance policies on the event of his 79th birthday and amid a wave of “No Kings” marches from coast to coast. Round 7:56 p.m. native time, a SLCPD sergeant reported listening to gunfire at 151 South State Avenue. Gunfire led to panic as a whole bunch “ran for security” by hiding in parking garages and close by companies.
When officers moved to safe the scene, they discovered a person, Ah Lavatory, affected by gunshot wounds. Two of these officers, recognized as SLCPD SWAT group members that double as paramedics, supplied emergency care. Ah Lavatory was transported to the hospital the place he died from his accidents.
As for the way the gunfire broke out, per the police and a number of media reviews, the occasion utilized a “peacekeeping group,” a few of whom have been armed with handguns and carrying high-visibility neon inexperienced vests. Two of the peacekeepers reportedly noticed a suspicious man within the crowd and watched him transfer behind a wall in a secluded space. The peacekeepers declare they noticed the person, later recognized as 24-year-old Arturo Gamboa, take an AR-15-style rifle out of a backpack.
Per SLCPD, the peacekeepers demanded Gamboa drop the weapon, however he allegedly lifted the rifle and ran towards a crowd of individuals on State Avenue. That’s when one of many peacekeepers fired three rounds. One spherical struck Ah Lavatory and one other struck Gamboa, who was later found by police “crouching amongst a gaggle of individuals with a gunshot wound.” Per police, he was wearing all-black clothes and carrying a black masks. Gamboa was taken to the hospital and later booked on a homicide cost on the Salt Lake County metro jail.
Tributes for Ah Lavatory, identified to pals and family members as “Afa,” have poured in since his tragic demise. He leaves behind a spouse, Laura, and their two youngsters, Vera and Isaac. A GoFundMe organized within the wake of his homicide, which at press time had raised $208,000 from a $370,000 objective, describes Ah Lavatory as a “proud Samoan” who was deeply linked to his tradition and group. He labored carefully with the Creative Pacific nonprofit, which “celebrates tradition, creativity and innovation” of Pacific Islanders by mounting an occasion that corralled designers, artists and trade professionals from varied backgrounds.
Utah consultant Verona Mauga, a Democrat from Salt Lake County, advised Utah’s KSL TV 5 that she had been with Ah Lavatory earlier within the evening at Pioneer Park earlier than the demonstrators marched into downtown. “Afa is an individual who believed in fairness and equality for all folks and all communities. He believed that everybody was deserving of fundamental human rights. And that’s why he was there,” Mauga advised the outlet. “He was along with his group, and he was with folks he cared about, marching and rallying for all of these issues that make our group, like, actually nice.”
She praised his work as a clothier and his distinction as the primary Samoan on Challenge Runway. “That was a giant deal, to have somebody of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander heritage be capable of break into the style trade, and he’s achieved wonderful work for fabulous folks.”
He continued to run his personal model, Afa Ah Lavatory, which, according to its website, additionally provided on-line stitching programs and stitching workshops. Moana star Auli’i Cravalho shared a customized look that Ah Lavatory created for her for the world premiere of Moana 2. “This island woman is on cloud 9,” she posted in November 2024. He additionally just lately dressed friends on the Gold Home Gala in Los Angeles.