Alla Ausheva was killed along with her two young sons in a triple homicide in Staten Island Saturday morning.
Her husband, Shane Walker, is accused of killing his family. No charges were immediately filed.
She was a mother of two and a U.S. Air Force National Guard member, found dead at her home along with her two sons in South Beach. She was a naturalized citizen who came to the United States in 2011 from Russia on a Green Card and joined the military three months later. She was also a singer who performed with The Singing Experience, a New York singers workshop.
Police found Alla Victorovna Ausheva and her two boys, ages 2 and 3, dead in their Palisades Street home in South Beach, Staten Island Saturday after a 911 call for an “assault in progress” at about 10:30 a.m.
She was a Russian-born woman who was naturalized by President Barack Obama , according to the New York Post.
Another Air Force member went to the home to check on Alla Ausheva when she found the door wide open. Police found the home filled with smoke. After a fire department extinguished the fire, officers found Ausheva and her two young boys dead.
Ausheva was killed seven years after she took her citizenship oath, nearly to the day, the New York Post reported.
Friends of Ausheva gathered in a prayer circle following the deaths, many of them in military fatigues.
“She was a beautiful person,” one friend told the New York Post.
Fellow service members pray together after their comrade, a woman, and two children were found dead in their SI home. Sources I.d her as Alla Ausheva. She was honored by President Obama in 2012. Read more @NY1 > t.co/8lvtu8jlwB
Van Tieu of NY1 tweeted, “Fellow service members pray together after their comrade, a woman, and two children were found dead in their SI home. Sources I.d her as Alla Ausheva. She was honored by President Obama in 2012.”
Ausheva moved to the U.S. from Russia in 2011 after winning a Green Card lottery, according to the New York Post, who interviewed her years before her death. Three months after moving to the U.S., she had already joined the New York Air National Guard. She was working her first job as a maintenance technician.
“I always wanted to live here,” she told The New York Post. “This is really a country where you can pursue your dream and do what you want to do.”
On July 4, 2012 she and 24 other foreign-born military members became naturalized citizens in a ceremony presided over by President Barack Obama.
“All of you did something profound: You chose to serve,” he told them, according to the New York Post. “You put on the uniform of a country that was not yet fully your own. You displayed the values that we celebrate every Fourth of July — duty, responsibility and patriotism.”
Ausheva told the New York Post she could hardly believe the experience.
“I still cannot believe that I saw the president and he said he is proud of me,” she said. “It’s incredible.”
She was also quoted in a press release from the New York Division of Military and Naval Affairs following the ceremony.
“It was awesome. I met the president. He’s just awesome. I’m so happy,” Ausheva said. “I just feel everything has happened so fast but I am definitely on the right track and I am going to remember this day and be a better soldier because I want to be useful,” she added.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Alla Was Found Dead In Her Home With Her Two Sons
Alla Ausheva was found dead in her Palisades Street home after a 911 call for an “assault in progress” at about 10:30 a.m.
Police arrived to find the home filled with smoke, according to Kenneth Corey, NYPD Assistant Chief and Commanding Officer of patrol Staten Island Borough. Firefighters extinguished a small fire, and police entered the home to find Ausheva dead, along with her two sons.
Shane Walker, Ausheva’s husband, was taken into custody in the deaths of his family members. He was found wandering the Brooklyn Queens Expressway at about 7:45 a.m. He was taken to a hospital for evaluation, and taken into custody after police discovered the bodies.
A neighbor told SI Live the family moved into the South Beach home about one year ago. She said Walker had been gone for “a very long time” and recently returned.
“I haven’t seen him in a very long time. He was somewhere and recently came back,” the neighbor told SI Live.
Ausheva was often alone with the children, the neighbor said.
“She was always alone and taking care of the kids,” she said.
The neighbor said she was in shock and grieving for Ausheva and her children.
“The poor girl didn’t have relatives in the country too. …It is horrible and hard to describe…it’s unbelievable. We’re all in shock and feel really bad for the mother and kids,” she said.
Alla Ausheva Was Naturalized for Military Service
Alla Ausheva came to the United States from Russia in 2011 and joined the New York Air National Guard three months later. She came to the U.S. after winning a Green Card in the lottery. She joined the military and became a maintenance technician.
Ausheva became a naturalized citizen July 4, 2012 along with 24 other foreign-born military service members. President Barack Obama presided over the ceremony. He told the new U.S. citizens, “All of you did something profound: You chose to serve,” according to the New York Post. “You put on the uniform of a country that was not yet fully your own. You displayed the values that we celebrate every Fourth of July — duty, responsibility and patriotism.”
She was ecstatic that the President of her new country said he was proud of her, the New York Post reported.
“I still cannot believe that I saw the president and he said he is proud of me,” she said. “It’s incredible.”
The Obama White House archives lists a press release of the ceremony.
It said she was born in Russia and lived in Bayside, New York. She joined the New York Army National Guard in July 2011. At the time, she served as a maintenance technician in Company G of the 427th Brigade Support Battalion. The unit supports the 1st Battalion 258th Field Artillery, the press release said.
Alla Ausheva Sang At A New York Singers Workshop
Alla Ausheva sang for The Singing Experience, a New York singers workshop.
The Singing Experience YouTube channel shared two videos of Ausheva singing.
In one, around Christmas, she wore a Santa Claus outfit and sang Santa Baby. She was introduced by a woman who described her as “amazing.”
“Now our next singer, she is just amazing and she is so cute, and you are absolutely going to love her.”
In a second video, she sang a song in Russian. She talked about love, death and memories before her performance.
“We all know that one of the most wonderful feelings in the world is love, and sometimes life separates us from the person we love and all we have are our memories,” she said.