Two people are pictured with their cousin. Moonesinghe is the image credit.
Austin has made a name for itself as an evolving tech hub with large companies and investors flocking to set up a presence.
The sudden death of a startup founder at the hands of a police officer has made the Texas capital a tragic place.
InKind co-founder Raj Moonesinghe was shot and killed outside of his south Austin home on November 15.
According to his brother, the 33-year-old had returned from a two-week trip and found his home to be out of place. One homeowner moved out of the affluent neighborhood because she felt unsafe after being robbed. The new owners hired security to protect them.
Moonesinghe bought an assault rifle a few weeks ago to protect himself in case of a break in. A brown man with a big gun doesn't get the benefit of the doubt according to his neighbor.
He had reason to be worried.
Moonesinghe retrieved his rifle as he looked around his property after talking to his neighbor who was concerned that someone might be in his house. Moonesinghe yelled for someone to get out of his house. He fired his rifle into the house. A security guard called for help.
According to Moonesinghe's brother, police arrived at his brother's property with no sirens or lights and one of them shot Raj in the back.
Police didn't announce themselves or give him time to put the gun down. You can see a video of the incident here. It might be inappropriate for some people.
The officers saved Raj's life before he died at the hospital.
Raj's family didn't know what happened to him until the next day. The police initially said that a white man had been shot, but they didn't say much else.
We were not sure what to think. We couldn't get in touch with Raj because the cops were there. We thought it was him at first, but then we realized it wasn't. They said they shot and killed a white man. We weren't sure what to think.
The incident took place in the middle of the night. The Moonesinghe family claim they were not told of Raj's death until the next day.
Raj was amazing. He went out of his way to help someone else. It's the worst thing that has ever happened to me and my family. It was preventable for me.
He said that they are lucky that they have a strong family and friends. The way the police handled it made it doubly hard to lose someone you love.
The press release stated that the department continued to investigate the shooting.
Raj was described as a dead man at the top of the release. The APD stated in the body of the release that the caller had described a man with a gun as a white male.
The police department identified the person who shot and killed Raj as Officer Danielnchez. The department is investigating and that's why he's on leave. The APD Special Investigations Unit would conduct a criminal investigation and the APD Internal Affairs Unit would conduct an administrative investigation.
InKind leased 22,000 square feet of office space that was Facebook's first office in Austin. The business is going well, according to the man. The startup, which launched in 2016 by funding restaurants by purchasing large amounts of food and beverage credits upfront, has raised $27 million in growth equity and $130 million in debt over the last year. The run rate is $48 million.
I am sad that Raj worked so hard for so long and that startups are very hard to start. He doesn't like that the company is on a rocket ship
The decision several years ago to move the startup he helped co-found with his brother, Andrew Harris, to Austin made him feel guilty. Both Seattle and Miami were considered.
The shooting was not my fault. I don't think this would happen in another place. I grew up in LA and lived in D.C. before moving to Austin. The brothers were both born in Los Angeles.
The lack of diversity in the city is a weird thing and the treatment of people of color by the police is upsetting. 19 officers were accused of seriously injuring the Black Lives Matter protesters. The officers used excessive force.
He said there was something in Austin and Black Lives Matter highlighted a lot of it. Austin has more than its fair share. He didn't give Raj a chance because he thought he was a big threat.
It can be difficult for outsiders to understand the contrast between the city's progressiveness and a population that is mostly very hospitable.
There isn't overt racism. People make judgements around others in a split second. That's problematic. I think Raj wouldn't have been killed if he were white.
Austin doesn't have a lot of diversity. The percentage of black residents decreased over time to an estimated 7% in 2020. Many of Austin's neighborhoods are similar to those in Silicon Valley with white and Asian residents.
He doesn't want his brother to be forgotten. He says he doesn't feel safe in Austin and that it's difficult for him to ask other people to move here, but he knows they can't just move in.
He wants to change Austin so that it is safe for everyone.
"I hope that the Austin police start the dialogue, give us some answers and explain to us what they're going to do differently so this doesn't happen again"
He wants to raise capital that would go toward specifically investing in companies that could possibly help prevent Raj from happening to other people.
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