Father who 'saw the good in everybody' remembered after 'senseless' shooting

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Walter Mulberry is being remembered as a loving father by friends and family after he was killed last week in a seemingly random drive-by shooting.

The 49-year-old was working as a security guard when he was the victim of a shooting that unleashed dozens of bullets on July 7 in Southeast Portland just after 1 a.m. The shooting also injured a 17-year-old boy who is expected to survive. The suspect is still out there.

A family member who was close to Mulberry was also present during the shooting near Southeast 9th and Ankeney, calling the incident, "Horror -- absolute horror."

Other relatives and friends of Mulberry attended a candlelight vigil Thursday night.

"We're here because my brother was working being a security officer the night that it happened," Vikki Ku-Ku said. "A guy or guys drove past and started shooting at people on the sidewalk, and my brother was an innocent victim."

Relatives honored his journey to sobriety and love for life.

"He was clean the day he died, trying to go home to his daughter and babies," Ku-Ku said.

Mulberry's death is one of 34 fatal shootings — out of 43 homicides in total — in Portland so far this year, police said. This all comes after Portland leaders called for curbing summer gun violence before it starts even as cases continue to keep police's hands full.

As the case for the suspect in Mulberry's killing is still underway, his family is hoping for justice.

"No matter what happened, he still saw the good in everybody," Ku-Ku said.

A GoFundMe page has been set up by Mulberry’s family to help fund his memorial.

Anyone with information about the suspect or shooting is encouraged to contact police.