Japanese Woman Among Las Vegas Campus Shooting Victims

Jiji Press

17:32 JST, December 9, 2023

SILICON VALLEY (Jiji Press) — A Japanese woman was among the three people killed in the shooting at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, on Wednesday, officials at the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco said Friday.

According to UNLV and local police, the woman has been identified as Naoko Takemaru, 69, an associate professor who taught Japanese language and culture at the U.S. university for 20 years.

“She was incredibly dedicated to her students,” UNLV President Keith Whitfield said in a statement.

Wednesday’s shooting left Takemaru and two others — a professor and another associate professor — dead and another injured.

The 67-year-old gunman died after an exchange of fire with police officers. He had a list of targets, but none of the victims was on the list, local police said. U.S. media reported that he worked as an associate professor at another university and applied for a job at UNLV, but was not hired.