Who was Sia Marie Xiong? Asian mother of 3-year-old shot dead in Compton, family calls for hate crime probe
COMPTON, CALIFORNIA: The family of Sia Marie Xiong is pleading with authorities to investigate her killing as a hate crime. The mother of a three-year-old was shot and killed in Compton, Los Angeles, on March 20, and the suspect is still at large. The 28-year-old was pronounced dead at the hospital from a gunshot wound to the torso. The case is being investigated by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
In a press conference on Sunday, March 21, the family said that race could have been a motive for the killing. Xiong's father is Cambodian and her mother is African-American, according to reports. Xiong is the latest victim in a long line of attacks on people of Asian origin, which is being attributed to Trump's racist rhetoric calling the Covid-19 virus the "China virus" among other terms. Here's everything we know about Sia Xiong:
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Who was Sia Xiong?
The 27-year-old woman was originally from San Diego and moved to Fontana, just outside Los Angeles. According to her family, she was studying to be an esthetician in the city. She leaves behind a three-year-old son named Shakur. “She was a free-spirited person with a whole lot of love and compassion,” her aunt Akeisa Lowe said.
Not much else is known about Xiong, who had four siblings. She does not appear to have a Facebook profile or a presence on Instagram or Twitter. The family has set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for Xiong's funeral services, as well as provide for her son. The target is $10,000, of which $7,975 has been met as of writing this article.
On Saturday, March 20, Xiong was shot on East Kay Street in Compton just before 6 am. She was rushed to a nearby hospital and declared dead shortly after. Police are still searching for a suspect, as well as a motive for the crime. The family though, believe it could be racially motivated.
Sia Marie Xiong, 28, was shot & killed in Compton Saturday. Her family fears it may be race related, given the rise in violence against Asian Americans. They demand hate crime investigation. LASD says the case is not a hate crime investigation. No motive, no suspects | @CBSLA pic.twitter.com/QFfLCOgW7S
— Rick Montanez (@RickCBSLA) March 22, 2021
"Given the rise in Asian Americans being murdered and hate crimes against Asian Americans we're asking the sheriff's department to look at it with that lens to see if the motivation was hate against Asians because of Asian descent," activist Najee Ali said at the press conference.
Lowe added, "And I just want to ask the sheriff’s department if they could look at it from more than one view.” The family is being represented by Toni Jaramilla, a prominent lawyer in the area.
The latest update issued by the police said, "The investigation is ongoing. There is no additional information available at this time." Xiong's killing comes just days after Robert Long targeted Asian-American victims in a series of shootings in Atlanta. The rise in attacks against the community has caught President Biden's eye, with the President saying "we have to act" in a speech on March 19. Biden also urged Congress to pass the Covid-19 Hate Crimes Act, which would create an officer or employee at the Justice Department who will help expedite the review of hate crimes.
Anyone with information about the suspect is encouraged to call the sheriff's Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500.