Campus Mourns Slain Mall Guard

The shooting death of a Cal State Fullerton student government official has left his classmates struggling to understand the seemingly senseless crime that began with the alleged gunman’s bizarre shoplifting attempt.

As campus leaders planned memorial services and other gestures to remember 22-year-old Kyle O’Brien of Orange, classmates reflected on the life and death of the anthropology senior.

“It’s crazy that something like this happened over something so insignificant,” said Heith Rothman, president of the Associated Student Body. “Everyone here is in shock.”

O’Brien worked as a security guard at Sears in the Mall of Orange, where he was gunned down Friday, reportedly by a man who tried to get a cash refund on a paint sprayer he did not buy.

O’Brien and another unarmed security guard followed the man to his parked car to retrieve his identification. Instead, investigators say, he pulled a handgun and shot both men, killing O’Brien and wounding the other guard.

On Sunday, police arrested Gilbert Ortiz, 20, of Bell as the suspected gunman.

O’Brien was the Associated Student Body’s vice president of finance and an officer in the Sigma Nu fraternity. The honors student also was a standout member of the campus fencing team and expected to compete next season on the national level.

His coach, Heizaburo Okawa, said O’Brien was a leader for the 21-member squad. “It is so hard to lose such a young man,” Okawa said. “He had a very bright future. This is very hard to take.”

A memorial is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday at the First Methodist Church in Orange and a campus memorial is tentatively set for Sept. 2. For more information on the services or the Kyle O’Brien scholarship fund, call (714) 278-2404.