Makeshift memorials are popping up around the site of Wednesday’s tragic mass shooting at the UPS Center in Potrero Hill in which the shooter allegedly “had it out for a manager”. Police investigators are piecing together the motives of apparently disgruntled employee Jimmy Lam, who reportedly felt he was asked to work too much overtime, and took his own life after killing three colleagues.
Make-shift memorial in front of the UPS building in SF's Potrero Hill. pic.twitter.com/WSq0dyyZ4Q
— Erasmo Guerra (@erasmoguerra) June 15, 2017
As the UPS Customer Service Center returns to work under a very dark cloud, residents are discovering the awful news about drivers whom they loved.
“We gotta get those packages out,” solemn but dogged overnight shift loader Isaiah Miggins told KRON 4. But while the UPS workplace is obliged to attempt a return to normalcy, both drivers and those residing on the murdered drivers’ routes will find it impossible to forget the lives lost.
Slain 50-year-old driver Benson Louie is memorialized in the Chronicle as a 17-year veteran at UPS, and a volleyball coach and player who is survived by two daughters and his wife. A customer on his route, Margaret Lee of Harvest Christian Bookstore, tells the Chron that “I was hoping, praying that it wasn’t him,” when she heard the news. “I can’t ever remember a time where he came in grumpy. Even when he would complain a little, like if he had to really look for my packages, he’d always have a smile on his face.” Another customer recalled Louie wouldn’t use her doorbell when he knew she has a newborn baby at her house. A fundraising website for Louie's family can be found here.
A Father's Day card sits amidst the growing memorial in front of UPS today in San Francisco pic.twitter.com/IoQwg04h4M
— Susie Steimle (@SusieSteimle) June 15, 2017
Memorial for @UPS driver Mike Lefiti in #SF #upsshooting. Clearly, he was a beloved man who made a positive impact on many. pic.twitter.com/gXIaJ6LpuF
— James A. Martin (@James_A_Martin) June 16, 2017
This UPS employee says he knew all 3 victims and the gunman. He's shocked. Described gunman as friendly pic.twitter.com/kazO6kFSra
— Melanie Woodrow (@MelanieWoodrow) June 15, 2017
Most chillingly, one UPS driver who spoke to Hoodline indicated that Lam likely timed the assault to inflict the maximum number of casualties possible. “I definitely think he waited for the [daily] meeting to start,” driver Brandi Porter told Hoodline. That daily driver meeting begins at 8:30 a.m. and involves 55 drivers and supervisors, Lam opened fire shortly before 9 a.m.
“They say UPS drivers and police officers have the highest rate of divorce, and I say that’s because of the overtime," Porter added. “You’ll never know what goes on in the mind of a UPS truck driver.”
Related: UPS Shooting Suspect Described As 'Loner'; All Three Victims Identified