Family, friends honor Mely Corado, woman who was killed at Silver Lake Trader Joe's

SILVER LAKE, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A memorial and vigil was held Wednesday at a Silver Lake church in honor of the woman who was killed in the crossfire during a chaotic situation at a nearby Trader Joe's.

Family, friends and coworkers of Melyda "Mely" Corado, 27, attended the memorial at Silver Lake Community Church around 7 p.m.

"I don't have words for it. It's so horrifying and so shocking. I came tonight because I really wanted to be with the community," Sue Appleton said.

Corado, who was a store manager at the market, was struck by an LAPD officer's bullet when a suspect ran into the store after he had shot at officers.

The community got together to also raise money for Corado's funeral service and to help her family.

After the service inside the church, the Corado family and everyone else in attendance walked to the Trader Joe's that was a few blocks away. There they held candles and had a moment of silence in the parking lot.

"It's been very haunting. I kept thinking about Mely and what it must have been like for her in her last few moments and it's just heartbreaking," Mabel Wong said. "I think we need to remember that she was a person, a beloved person and her life was lost."

The suspect, 28-year-old Gene Evin Atkins, was charged with murder and 30 other counts.