Officials in Washington D.C. announce increased reward in killing of UMass Amherst senior
Tarpinian-Jachym was not the intended target, police said. A black Acura police believe was used in the shooting was recovered, officials said.
Advertisement
The 16-year-old 'was kind of engaged as part of the group' involved in the gunfire, Pamela Smith, the District of Columbia's police chief, said last week.
Tarpinian-Jachym, a Granby resident, graduated from Pope Francis Preparatory School in Springfield and was seeking a degree in finance with a minor in political science at UMass Amherst. He began interning in the office of Representative Ron Estes, a Kansas Republican, in June.
The Metropolitan Police Department, which covers D.C., offers rewards up to $25,000 for each homicide committed in the city. An additional $15,000 was added Tuesday for information leading to the arrest of the gunman by the FBI's Washington field office.
Smith said at a press conference last week that investigators have recovered 'good video footage that is 'a little grainy' and have called in technical experts from the FBI to enhance the image.
Advertisement
'We have not physically taken into custody any guns, knives, anything like that, but we do have some video images that may help us along the way.'
The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is examining ballistic evidence, Smith said.
She said an object was also found at the scene of the shooting, but would not say what it was.
Police have not provided new information since Thursday.
Tarpinian-Jachym was remembered by friends and family for his warmth and enthusiasm. In a statement, his family said they were 'devastated by the tragic and senseless loss of our beloved Eric, a 21-year-old young man full of promise, purpose, and heart,' the statement said.
'Eric was an exceptionally bright and kind soul, with a deep love for the outdoors. He found joy and peace in nature — whether hiking through the woods or casting a line into a quiet stream while fishing," the statement said.
Clark Burg, who met Tarpinian-Jachym in February at the
'He really cared,' Burg, 19, said. 'He always cheered you up.'
Lily Myers, 21, who was also in the fellowship program, said Tarpinian-Jachym was 'charismatic.'
'Eric was just one of the people that stood out in our program,' she said. 'He got along with everybody. He was always really fun to be around.'
In
'We are grateful to Eric for his service to Kansas' 4th District and the country,' Estes said.
Advertisement
Information from previous Globe articles was used in this report.
Ava Berger can be reached at
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
33 minutes ago
- USA Today
Senator hits Trump for blaming Epstein backlash on Dems, says it's as if viral CEO faulted Coldplay
WASHINGTON – Sen. Amy Klobuchar hit back at President Donald Trump after he blamed Democrats for the backlash his administration faces over its handling the Jeffrey Epstein case – making a comparison to a viral video taken at a Coldplay concert that sparked days of controversy. Some prominent Republicans, GOP voters and Democrats alike have accused the Justice Department of botching a review of files on the disgraced financier. Online conspiracies have long circulated about a scandalous Epstein "client list" and the convicted sex offender's death by suicide in 2019. However, the Justice Department and FBI released a report detailing the opposite, finding no client list or proof Epstein was murdered. Still, the Trump administration is under pressure to release all information the government may have on Epstein. In response, Trump in a July 18 Truth Social post said, 'If there was a 'smoking gun' on Epstein, why didn't the Dems, who controlled the 'files' for four years, and had Garland and Comey in charge, use it? BECAUSE THEY HAD NOTHING!!!' Trump was referring to former Attorney General Merrick Garland, who served under President Joe Biden, and former FBI Director James Comey, who Trump fired in 2017 following an investigation into his first presidential campaign. But Klobuchar told CNN's Jake Tapper on 'State of the Union' that Trump blaming Democrats is 'like that CEO that got caught on camera blaming Coldplay. Okay, like this is his making.' Astronomer CEO Andy Byron last week was seen embracing his company's chief people officer at a Boston-area performance by the band Coldplay. Byron resigned from his role after the video immediately went viral and prompted widespread jokes and speculation. The Minnesota Democrat added, 'It is the Trump administration that has made this promise that they're going to release it. So I am – blaming Democrats for this, to me, I'm sorry. This is – the people that have been fomenting this are right-wing influencers, members of Congress.' Adding fuel to the fire is a Wall Street Journal report that Trump sent a lewd letter to Epstein on his 50th birthday. Trump has denied the report and sued the Journal over it. He's also directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to produce more Epstein documents amid public clamor for the records. Contributing: Zac Anderson and Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY
Politico
an hour ago
- Politico
Klobuchar rebuffs Trump's efforts to fault Dems in Epstein case
Backlash — largely from inside Trump's MAGA base — teed off when the White House announced in early July that a Department of Justice and FBI review had found no evidence of an incriminating client list connected to Epstein. Trump, whose return to the White House was keyed in part by a willingness to embrace conspiracy theories like the ones surrounding Epstein, has been keen to move on. But the furor has seen some of Trump's biggest supporters calling for the ouster of his attorney general, Pam Bondi, and predicting dire consequences lest he begin to take it seriously. The president, meanwhile, has raged. 'Radical left Democrats,' Trump said in a Truth Social post Wednesday, were responsible for the 'Jeffrey Epstein Hoax.' And they'd refrained from making any moves during Joe Biden's presidency, he said. 'If there was a 'smoking gun' on Epstein, why didn't the Dems, who controlled the 'files' for four years, and had Garland and Comey in charge, use it? BECAUSE THEY HAD NOTHING!!!,' the president wrote on social media Friday. Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.), one of several House Republicans who have called for the release of the government's Epstein files, echoed Trump's attacks against Democrats in a Sunday interview also on Tapper's show. 'Where the heck have they been the last four years? I'm ticked off at everybody,' he said. 'Look, this thing should have been handled. Now we're at the point they're going to start dumping files.' Klobuchar rejected claims that Democrats bore responsibility for the controversy. The White House, she said, had entered into a crisis of its own making. 'The people that have been fomenting this are right-wing influencers, members of Congress, people who have a reason that they want to know what's in there,' Klobuchar told Tapper. 'They believe the president when he said, there's stuff in there that people should see.'
The Hill
2 hours ago
- The Hill
Klobuchar defends Democrats for inaction on Epstein under Biden
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) defended Democrats for jumping on Republican calls for the federal government to release files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, even though her party largely remained mum on the issue while former President Biden was in office. In an interview on CNN's 'State of the Union' with Jake Tapper, the Minnesota Democrat rejected President Trump's efforts to blame Democrats for inaction. 'The president blaming Democrats for this disaster, Jake, is like that CEO that got caught on camera blaming Coldplay,' Klobuchar said, referring to the latest so-called 'kiss cam' scandal. 'This is his making. He was president when Epstein got indicted for these charges and went to prison. He was president when Epstein committed suicide. And then there was another case, as you know, that continued during the Biden administration, but he was president back then, so all of us would believe they know what's in these documents. They know what's there. They've been claiming forever that they should be released,' she continued. 'It is a Trump administration that has made this promise that they're going to release it,' Klobuchar added, noting Attorney General Pam Bondi released binders described as the 'first phase' of the declassification of Epstein documents. Klobuchar emphasized that Democrats have not been as focused on the issue as Republicans have been. 'Blaming Democrats for this, to me, I'm sorry. This is- the people that have been fomenting this are right-wing influencers, members of Congress,' she said. 'People have a reason that they want to know what's in there. They believe the President when he said there's stuff in there that people should see. Wall Street Journal. These are not bastions of liberalism or wild progressives that have come out and said the public has a right to know what is in these documents,' she continued. Trump, in a Truth Social post on Friday, asked why the Democrats did not release the files linked to the disgraced financier when they controlled the Senate and White House. 'If there was a 'smoking gun' on Epstein, why didn't the Dems, who controlled the 'files' for four years, and had [former Attorney General Merrick] Garland and [ex-prosecutor Maureen] Comey in charge, use it,' Trump wrote on Truth Social. He added, 'BECAUSE THEY HAD NOTHING!!!' Trump earlier directed Bondi to release relevant grand jury testimony in Epstein's case. The directive, which has garnered mixed reactions, followed pressure from some of Trump's supporters and Democrats alike for the White House to disclose more information about its probe of the case.
