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Teenage employee killed in Virginia Walmart shooting wanted to help his family

16-year-old Fernando Chavez-Barron, one of the victims of the Virginia Walmart shooting
Fernando Chavez-Barron, 16, was the last of the six people killed by a gunman at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Va., to be publicly identified.
(Chesapeake Police Department)

Authorities on Friday released the name of the teenager who was among six Walmart employees shot to death by a store manager in Chesapeake, Va.

He was 16-year-old Fernando Chavez-Barron. The Chesapeake youth and five adults died after Walmart supervisor Andre Bing opened fire before a staff meeting inside the store’s break room Tuesday night.

Fernando’s family and friends dressed in white to honor him at a vigil in the Walmart parking lot Thursday night. His friends told the Virginian-Pilot newspaper that it was hard to believe that he was gone.

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Family friend Rosy Perez told the New York Times that the teen attended a local high school while working the overnight shift at Walmart to assist his family.

A doting father of two, a mother with wedding plans and a happy-go-lucky guy were among the six people killed in a shooting at a Virginia Walmart.

“He wanted to help a little bit,” Perez said. “He was a very good child.”

The five adult victims were identified late Wednesday as Brian Pendleton, 38; Kellie Pyle, 52; Lorenzo Gamble, 43; Randy Blevins, 70; and Tyneka Johnson, 22. All were from Chesapeake except Johnson, who was from nearby Portsmouth.

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