Ma Kaing, killed in East Colfax shooting, remembered as ‘champion of the American dream’

At p m on July a bullet ended the life of a mother a wife a refugee a restaurant owner a group leader Ma Kaing was killed as she unloaded food from her car outside her family s apartment building in Denver s East Colfax neighborhood Across the street young men in a dispute with neighborhood rivals fired more than shots from a nearby park Kaing s son Kyaw Oo held his mother as she died on the sidewalk that night On Friday afternoon a Denver prosecutor read a letter from Oo in court as the son inquired a judge to punish his mother s killer I remember the time the night every second Oo wrote I held her as she took her last breath I promised her I would take care of her family As her eldest I remember that promise with every breath The shooter Lu Reh was sentenced Friday to life in prison without parole for his role in Kaing s death He was convicted in February of first-degree murder along with other charges in connection with Kaing s death Reh declined to speak when offered the chance at Friday s hearing by Denver District Judge Nikea T Bland Ma Kaing was a beloved member of the locality and honestly a champion of the American dream Bland noted Two accomplices Nu La and Swa Bay pleaded guilty in July to second-degree murder for their roles in Kaing s murder A fourth man -year-old Pa Reh is scheduled for trial in July Kaing s family chose not to attend the sentencing hearing Kaing and her family had worked late that night to fulfill a catering order They were carrying pans of dessert from the car to Hidden Brook Apartments at Xenia St when a bullet from the gunfight struck her The restaurant had been one of Kaing s dreams Six months earlier the family had opened Taw Win Thai and Burmese Restaurant serving food from Kaing s native Myanmar formerly known as Burma Her spirit came alive in every dish Oo wrote in his letter Kaing s life was never easy She lost her oldest child a daughter to war in Myanmar Kaing her husband and two other children fled in settling in Colorado She had two more sons after arriving in the United States The family lived in an often neglected area of Denver that straddles the territory line with Aurora Various residents are refugees and immigrants from all over the world who came to Colorado to escape violence disclosed Anthony Santos senior deputy district attorney for the Denver District Attorney s Office The neighborhood is almost jaded with the violence they have seen Santos declared describing shootouts that often happen The violence exposed Kaing Reh and his co-defendants who were hanging out in New Freedom Park sprayed a city block with more than bullets Santos commented They noted they were shooting at a car driven by people they had a dispute with and feared they were going to be shot It s a miracle that more people weren t hit Santos explained The death brought intense outrage to the East Colfax neighborhood When Kaing was shot her daughter then dialed but her call bounced between law enforcement dispatch centers because cellular call-routing systems had not been updated Her call first went to the Aurora dispatch center before she was transferred to Denver The family announced it took about minutes for an ambulance to arrive and questioned whether their mother could have been saved had one arrived sooner Related Articles Woman shot dead in Denver is identified a public leader she was a refugee from Burma Denver s East Colfax neighborhood mourns a remarkable spirit as family questions response to shooting calls from cellphones can be precisely pinpointed One carrier won t install the system in Colorado Verizon agrees to upgrade call-routing in wake of complaints from Denver s East Colfax neighborhood Man convicted of murder in Denver shooting death of beloved East Colfax resident Ma Kaing Population pressure after the shooting forced Verizon to install new device to better pinpoint where callers using cellphones are located AT T already was upgrading its configuration Kaing was a pillar of the East Colfax area serving on the neighborhood association s board of directors and volunteering at a district food bank She was known by almost everyone in the Hidden Brook Apartments and she was especially helpful to other Burmese refugees Oo wrote in his letter that his mother required the family to come to the United States to have better opportunities She was proud when she watched their graduations and saved every penny she could to open Taw Win Ma Kaing my mother was the foundation of that dream Oo wrote She was the reason we survived The reason we thrived She was a strong mother who also unveiled time to make sure neighbors had enough food and clothes often sharing vegetables she grew in a public garden Oo wrote that he would not forgive the people who killed his mother even though she likely would have He pledged to carry on with her legacy spirit and values Her strength runs through all of us and we will carry her grace with strength and dignity Oo wrote Sign up to get crime 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