A man dies in a workplace shooting Rami Yerahmiel Cooks, a 62-year-old white male originally from Israel and residing in Minnetonka, Minnesota, was fatally shot during a mass workplace shooting at Accent Signage Systems in Minneapolis on September 27, 2012. He worked at the company as a production manager and was present when the violence erupted.
On that afternoon, the shooter—a 36-year-old former employee named Andrew John Engeldinger—entered the Accent Signage building armed with a 9 mm Glock 19 pistol shortly
after being fired. During a confrontation in the executive offices, Engeldinger shot multiple people, including the operations director John Souter and production manager Rami Cooks. Rami Yerahmiel Cooks, 62, male, white, was severely wounded, hit in the head, and died later that evening at Hennepin County Medical Center. He was pronounced dead at 11:18 p.m. after having been shot around 4:35 p.m.
The assault claimed the lives of six victims in total among them: Reuven Rahamim, 61, male, white ; Jacob Beneke, 34, male, white; Ronald Edberg, 58, male, white; Keith Basinski, 50, male, white ; Eric Rivers, 42, male, white. Rami Yerahmiel Cooks, 62, male, white, was one of the casualties.
In the case of Rami Cooks specifically, sources identify him as a “native of Israel,” and recount his roles and family affiliations: he was survived by his life partner Pam Wexler; children named Shiri, Gali, Orr, Topaz, Dana, Ross, and Nathan; a grandson named Shayden; a brother Aryeh; and a sister Yocheved. His obituary details funeral arrangements at Bet Shalom Congregation in Minnetonka and mentions family gatherings held thereafter.
The shooter, male, identified as Andrew John Engeldinger, had been fired earlier that same day. At some point in the executive offices, he drew his legally owned handgun and began shooting, critically wounding several people. After rampaging through the facility, he ended his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a basement area of the building.
There were no arrests in the case—because the shooter died by suicide at the scene, law enforcement did not arrest or charge any suspect post-incident. The tragedy is officially characterized as a murder–suicide.
Across multiple sources, emphasis is placed on the demographic details for each victim when known. In Rami Cooks's case, each mention affirms: 62-year-old male, white, Israeli-born, workplace production manager. His identity is woven into accounts that underscore his familial roles, his long tenure with the company, and his tragic fate at the hands of the fired ex-employee turned mass shooter.
