SALT LAKE CITY — A week after a tragic murder-suicide in Salt Lake City, the community is mourning a teenager’s death.
With heavy hearts, people gathered at Sunnyside Park Sunday night to mourn the death of Om Gandhi — a 16-year-old who was shot and killed by his father, Parth Gandhi.
On Sunday night, Om’s friends wanted to heal together — to gather to celebrate Om and his love for music, and to raise awareness about their situation. People held candles, listened to Om’s favorite instruments and wrote notes on paper.
READ: Custody battle preceded murder-suicide of SLC father and son
There are still many questions left to be answered about what exactly happened. On May 13, Salt Lake City Police found Parth and Om’s bodies in Parth’s office building, located at 2936 S. Highland Drive.
Om’s childhood best friend and neighbor, Ella Udell, said she misses her friend and wants to do everything she can for him.
“I want Om to be remembered as the warm, kind, loving, intelligent, creative, funny person that he was,” said Udell, who organized the vigil. “I think the main thing for today is giving an outlet for the community to heal.”
Court documents show a lengthy custody battle between Parth Gandhi and his ex-wife, Leah Moses, for Om. Parth had sole custody of Om through a temporary order in 2022. Documents also show that a custody evaluation report was filed weeks before the father and son's deaths.
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Resources for domestic violence victims/prevention (free, 24/7, confidential):
- Utah Domestic Violence Coalition
- Hotline: 1-800-897-LINK (5465)
- Online help: udvc.org
- National Domestic Violence Hotline
- 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
- Online live chat: thehotline.org
- If you or someone else is in immediate danger, or in an emergency, call 9-1-1 immediately.
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For those struggling with thoughts of suicide, the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline can now be reached by simply dialing 988 any time for free support. Resources are also available online at utahsuicideprevention.org.
