Refugee Employment Risks

Roanoke, Virginia: Refugee kills one wounds three at manufacturing company, by Ann Corcoran 10/25/16

No wonder Roanoke isn’t feeling very welcoming toward more refugees (remember this story! ). Hey, all you big companies looking for cheap refugee labor take note! We bring an awful lot of refugees in to America with mental illnesses.

From WDBJ7 (Hat tip: Suzanne): ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ7) The man who shot and killed a person and shot three others at FreightCar America has been identified as 53-year-old Getachew Fekede from Kenya.

Polie on the scene of this morning’s shooting in Roanoke. Shooter is a refugee former worker at the FreightCar America facility there. Police say he died from a self-inflicted gunshot would.

Three other employees were shot. One of them has been released from the hospital. Roanoke police say around 10 rounds were fired from a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun.

Fekede last worked at FreightCar America in March. [They make railroad cars—ed]. He arrived at the building by bicycle, police say. Fekede came to Virginia in 2011 as part of a refugee program.

No mention of Fekede’s nationality (his resettlement contractor*** would know).  We don’t take Kenyans as refugees, but we take thousands of Somalis and other African migrants (Sudanese, Ethiopians) who have re-located to Kenya.  So keep an eye out for more news about where he is really from and what his religion might be. [Update: a reader tells us he is probably Ethiopian.]

Longtime readers may remember the famous failed kidnapping plot in Roanoke in 2009 where several refugees were found guilty of attempting to kidnap one or more prominent women in the town and hold her/them for ransom. Also we have 2,024 posts in our refugee crimes category, here. Commonwealth Catholic Charities is responsible for refugees resettled in Roanoke.

Comments

Employers have a responsibility to their employees not to hire crazy people.  The workplace is a good vetting system and co-workers will help identify “problem hires”.  That is why there is always a “probation period”.  Employers also have a responsibility to secure the workplace from intrusion by former employees who might be violent. 

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader