DURHAM, N.C. (WNCN) – Durham police have identified the victim of a Monday morning shooting as Angela Risi. The 30-year-old was a Duke graduate student.
“Angela Risi was a second-year graduate student in the Master of Fine Arts in Dance program at Duke,” Duke Vice President for Communications Frank Tramble said. “We are in contact with her family and have shared our condolences at a time of immeasurable hurt.”
Police said Risi was killed at a home on Worth Street and a second woman suffered gunshot wounds.
“The Duke community joins in their shock and sadness at this tragic loss,” Tramble said. “Counselors are providing support to members of the close-knit dance program and to anyone at Duke struggling with this terrible news.”
“Her kindness and deep intelligence were evident to all who were fortunate enough to work with her, faculty, staff, students and alums,” Director of Graduate Studies in Dance Sarah Wilbur said in an email obtained by The Chronicle to those affiliated with the dance program. “Our hearts go out to her chosen and biological family members, as they navigate the immeasurable depth of a sudden loss like this, which just makes no sense.”
Daniela Rangel lives right around the corner from the incident. For her, seeing something like this is, unfortunately, nothing new.
“I think it’s incredibly sad how desensitized I’ve personally become to things like this,” Rangel said.
Investigators went in and out of a house right across from the Golden Belt Campus, an office building near downtown’s core.
Durham police’s mobile command truck came to the scene and investigators could be seen taking photos of evidence.
“I would love to see our City Council folks and our mayor and people just really respond to this,” Rangel said. “I see police cars everywhere and I don’t see a decrease in these type of incidents. So I would love to see different methods applied to solve the problem.”
Based on the preliminary investigation, police said this appears to be an isolated incident. The investigation is ongoing and no other information was available.
Anyone with any information about the shooting is asked to call Investigator J. Harris at 919-560-4440 ext. 29120 or CrimeStoppers at 919-683-1200. CrimeStoppers pays cash rewards for information leading to arrests in felony cases and callers never have to identify themselves.
