The 19-year-old died days after he was shot by a man who opened fire at a California movie screening of The Forever Purge, also killing an 18-year-old woman.
Anthony Barajas, a popular 19-year-old TikToker, died early Saturday after he and his date were shot at a California movie screening of The Forever Purge, the Corona Police Department said.
Rylee Goodrich, an 18-year-old woman who was watching the movie with Barajas at the theater, died of her injuries at the scene.
Barajas, who had nearly one million followers on his TikTok account @itsanthonymichael, had been on life support since Monday’s shooting, which police have so far described as an “unprovoked attack.”
Police arrested Joseph Jimenez, 20, on Tuesday. Authorities recovered a firearm from his residence that matched the weapon used in the shooting.
He was booked on charges of murder, attempted murder, and robbery, and was being held on a $2 million bail.
After Barajas’ death on Saturday, the Corona Police Department said it was working with the district attorney’s office to add an additional count of first-degree murder against Jimenez.
Police said that based on statements from witnesses, “there is no known motive and it appears to be an unprovoked attack.”
Barajas and Goodrich were watching a 9:35 p.m. screening of The Forever Purge together at the Crossings mall in Corona on Monday night. Police told reporters at a press conference that only six tickets had been sold for the screening.
The film is the fifth installment in The Purge franchise, a series of dystopian action horror movies in which all violent crime, including murder, is legalized for one day every year.
Police responded to a call for service at the theater at approximately 11:45 p.m., where they found both Barajas and Goodrich with multiple gunshot wounds. Goodrich succumbed to her injuries at the scene, while Barajas was transported to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.
Police have asked for any tips or help from those who were inside the theater, in another theater, or at the shopping center at the time of the shooting.
Two separate GoFundMe campaigns for Barajas and Goodrich have raised more than $60,000 each as of Saturday.
“Words seem inadequate to express the sorrow felt by the loss of Rylee. Her kindness, and gentle spirit will be remembered forever,” the GoFundMe page for Goodrich said.
“Anthony was the light of so many peoples lives and there are tough times ahead,” the fundraiser for Barajas said.
Many fans and well-wishers flooded Barajas’ social media accounts with prayers and tributes.
“I’ll always know anthony as the dude who would literally go above and beyond to make sure others were welcomed,” one friend wrote on Instagram. “He was truly one of the most kind people i’ve met in la – very hard to come by.”
Goodrich was the owner of a lash extensions business who had won a scholarship to Grand Canyon University’s STEM program. She was home from the summer visiting family when she was killed, family members told ABC7.
