Celebrities and fans are mourning the death of The Voice finalist Christina Grimmie, who passed away after being shot by an unidentified man while signing autographs after her presentation in Orlando, Florida.
The death of the 22-year-old singer performed at the Orlando Plaza Live Theater with the band Before You Exit and had been signing autographs for her fans backstage when an unidentified gunman blasted into the scene and shot hear.
Grimmie’s brother tackled down the shooter, saving the rest of the crowd at the scene, but the man reacted by shooting himself in front of around 60 teenagers and children, according to the Daily Mail.
The shooting happened around 10:45 pm, reported the Orlando police in a Twitter message and explaining how the suspect walked toward Christina and shot her. They said that Christina’s brother “immediately tackled the suspect,” reported the cops.
It was confirmed by Orlando’s police Sergeant Wanda Miglio, that the killer had two guns and started shooting Grimmie at the scene, early reports suggest the singer was only hit once by the gunman.
Grimmie was rushed to the Orlando Regional Medical Center emergency room. Witnesses have stated that the singer was bleeding from her head. News of the shooting spread quickly, and prayers for Christina started on social media.
Around 2:45 am, Christina’s publicist confirmed the death of the singer via social media.
“It is with the heavy heart that we can confirm that Christina has passed and went home to be with the Lord. She was shot at her show in Orlando and, unfortunately, didn0t survive the gunshot wounds,” wrote Grimmie’s publicist.
The singer’s publicist went on to take privacy for the family of the singer on this hard moments and didn’t provide any details about the happening.
Social media response to Grimmie’s death
A thousand responds emerged on Twitter and different social media praying for the singer’s well-being before her death was announced.
The Voice coach and singer, Adam Levine, who was her coach during the 2014 season, published a photo of him and Grimmie in which he wrote that he is “sad, shocked and confused” for the unfair event. He added that the whole The Voice crew love her are all “praying hard” for her.
The Orlando Police Department confirmed the death of the singer on their Twitter account.
“With deep regret, we have confirmed Christina Grimmie @TheRealGrimmie has died from her injuries,” reads the tweet.
Several other celebrities such as Demi Lovato and Nick Jonas paid their condolences after the death of the singer was announced. The hashtag #RIPCHRISTINA rapidly became Trending Topic on Twitter.
The band Before You Exit, who was playing with the singer minutes before her death, wrote and published a statement on Twitter assuring the loving and caring person the star was. The Voice singing show also used social media to express condolences for Grimmie’s death.
There is currently no information about the motive of the shooting and the identity of the gunman. Further details will be released by the Orlando Police after investigations are held.
Source: Daily Mail