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25-year-old man who survived shooting at Jacksonville video game tournament dies in car crash

25-year-old man who survived shooting at Jacksonville video game tournament dies in car crash
Posted at 9:46 AM, Sep 17, 2018
and last updated 2018-09-17 10:49:08-04

A 25-year-old man who survived the shooting at a Madden video game tournament in Jacksonville, Florida died Sunday in single-vehicle car crash, according to reports.

Ryen Aleman was driving westbound on Highway 44 near Corpus Christi, Texas when he lost control of his car, according to KIII-TV. Aleman was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected from the vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The crash is still being investigated, the Texas Department of Public Safety said.

The Texas man was caught in the chaos of the August 26 shooting that occurred at the Jacksonville Landing complex during a qualifying event for the Madden 19 Tournament. 

In his account to NPR, Aleman recalled hearing the initial popping sounds of gunfire and crawling to the bathroom stalls to hide. 

"You could hear people crying," he told NPR. "You could hear people saying, 'I'm shot,' you can hear people tripping, trying to leave, scrambling everywhere, running for their lives."

The shooter, David Katz, killed two and injured several others before turning the gun on himself.

About two weeks ago, Aleman posted a photo of himself playing video games to his Facebook page with a caption that read "god gave me a second life and I’m enjoying it every single (minute)."

 

Aleman's mother started a GoFundMe for her son's funeral expenses. 

"He was a survivor of the Jacksonville shooting at the Madden tournament and we were beyond blessed that he was okay and still here with us," the description on the fundraiser reads, "but not even a month later, our Lord decided to call him home."