Friends of the Ahimbisibwe family, believed to have been slain by their son Isaac, have held a touching vigil in remembrance of the Christian family.
Friends got together at the River Oaks chapel to remember Israel Ahimbisibwe, a pastor, his wife Dorcus and their five-year-old son Israel Jr. who were killed in their own home. Their eldest son Isaac Tiharihondi, 19, has been accused of the murder. He is charged with capital murder.
The Church of St. John the Divine's chapel, where Ahimbisibwe's family was active until Israel became a pastor of another church, sang songs for the victims and praised them for their faith.
KHOU, a news agency of Houston, Texas reports that friends of the family are shocked that their eldest son could have committed such a crime.
"Isaac went to elementary school with my daughter at Presbyterian School," saidWendy Wilson-Wills. "He was an outstanding young man. I cannot understand what possibly could have happened to cause him to do such a heinous act like this. It's just a terrible, terrible loss."
"All I can think of is Isaac was quiet, personable," added Lisa Otey, whose son played basketball with Tiharihondi.
But some shared how Isaac's mother observed a change in her son's behaviour recently. Their family friend Peggy Fergus said that Dorcus was "concerned about him because he's just not himself." But they never thought that Isaac's odd behaviour would lead him to murder his own family.
Steve Capper, another person who knew the victims, questioned how people can just "snap" and commit such a crime. He did say, however, that the family was "surrounded by people who love them and support them and who right now are broken-hearted for them."
The family came to the US from Uganda. Israel Sr. was ordained in the Church of Uganda and held two master's degrees - one from Princeton Theological Seminary and another from Harvard Divinity School. He specialised in Old Testament study. He later earned another master's and doctorate from Rice University after completing graduate research at Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
