A bed of red roses covers Minhaj Jamshidi’s grave.
Family and loved ones surround it Wednesday evening, kneeling and sobbing in each other’s arms.
The 19-year-old Pima College student was shot and killed Sunday night during a dispute that escalated to a deadly end during a pickup volleyball game outside a dorm on the University of Arizona campus. His alleged killer was arrested on the same day as the burial.
His family, encircled by a crowd of more than 50 mourners at the All Faiths Cemeteries on Tucson’s far east side, bury Jamshidi, amid prayers and chants of mourning, a visible display of community solidarity.
Mourners gather around the grave of Minhaj Jamshidi Wednesday evening at All Faiths Cemetery in Tucson. The 19-year-old Pima College student was killed Sunday night during a volleyball game on the University of Arizona campus.
More than an hour before the funeral procession to the cemetery, mourners had gathered at the Islamic Center of Tucson near the UA campus to pray for Jamshidi. Chants of “Allahu Akbar,” a phrase said during times of distress as well as joy which means “God is great” or “God is greatest,” filled the mosque.
“Our brother Minhaj is shahid,” shouted an elderly mourner into the crowd at the cemetery. “Why? Because disbelievers killed him. May Allah make his grave paradise. Allah will reward him with jannat (paradise).”
Upon reaching the cemetery, the funeral procession gathered at the burial ground, the crowd divided into men and women. The men take shovels to the ground. The women wait with roses in hand and hold onto each other, sobbing silently.
“She just wants justice,” said Qais Papoutsis, Jamshidi’s employer at Opa Best Greek American Cuisine, translating for Jamshidi’s mother, Khalida.
Mourners hold photos of Minhaj Jamshidi Wednesday evening at Tucson's All Faiths Cemetery. One of the photos is of Jamshidi's graduation this spring from Catalina High School.
“(Minhaj) was her everything, (he) was her first son. Everywhere she sees, she would see him with a beautiful smile," Papoutsis says. "He was happy all the time (and would) keep everybody happy.”
Once Jamshidi’s body is placed into its burial space, sand and rocks are shoveled back onto it.
The women followed, placing the red roses on top of the fresh grave.
