Arash Farazmand, a 28-year-old male Iranian musician, was tragically killed in a shooting in Brooklyn, New York. The incident, which occurred on November 11, 2013, also claimed the lives of his brother and bandmate, Soroush Farazmand, who was 27, and a fellow musician and friend, 35-year-old Ali Eskandarian. Arash was the drummer for the band The Yellow Dogs, an indie rock group that had moved to the United States from Iran to pursue their musical aspirations.
The night of the tragedy
unfolded in a three-story building on Maujer Street in East Williamsburg, which served as a home and rehearsal space for the musicians. The gunman, identified as 29-year-old Ali Akbar Mohammadi Rafie, another Iranian musician, accessed the building from the roof. Armed with a. 308-caliber rifle that he reportedly carried in a guitar case, Rafie first shot Ali Eskandarian through a third-floor window. He then entered the residence and shot Arash Farazmand in a third-floor bedroom. Continuing his rampage, he proceeded to the second floor, where he shot Soroush Farazmand. A fourth individual, Sasan Sadeghpourosko, was also shot and wounded in the arm but survived the attack.
Following the shootings, Rafie returned to the roof of the building, where he took his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Law enforcement officials were called to the scene shortly after midnight by one of the survivors. The investigation that followed revealed that the shooter was not a former member of The Yellow Dogs, as was initially reported, but had been associated with another band, the Free Keys. The motive appeared to stem from a personal conflict and a falling out with the members of both bands more than a year prior to the incident, reportedly over the selling of band equipment. The two surviving members of The Yellow Dogs were not at the residence at the time of the shooting. The bodies of Arash and Soroush Farazmand were later repatriated to Iran for burial.
