A security guard who died a hero in a roller rink shooting that left two others injured has been described as "the best dad."
Richard Williamson's daughter Rebecca has been left devastated by the fact she will never see her father again following the attack, which happened during a New Year's Eve celebration in Grand Terrace.
But she was not surprised that her father, who was known to friends as Big Will, had given his life protecting others.
"There are just no words to express what kind of a person he was. No one can replace him," Williamson said. "Great person, great dad. Best dad, best man I know... he was there through everything."
And she said that while he was a giant of a man, he was as sweet as they come.
"(He was a) big guy but he (had a) big heart as well," Williamson said.
Her father was killed when gunfire broke out at about 2 a.m. at Cal Skate roller rink at 22080 Commerce Way, where about 200 people were celebrating the holiday. When sheriff’s deputies arrived, three people with gunshot wounds were found in the parking lot.
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Richardson, who owned a private security company in Riverside, and his staff were working security at the event. His niece Nena Funches, who was inside the rink, said the violence began shortly after they received a threat on social media.
She revealed her uncle told her to keep everyone inside as he and another guard went outside to check out the parking lot. Moments later, gunfire erupted.
"There was like an alert on the Internet saying there was shooting that was going to occur and they were going to make their way inside," Funches said.
Funches said she had no idea why the rink had been targeted.
The two injured men were described by the sheriff’s department only by their ages. One victim is 22 and the other is 28 years old. One of them was also a security guard at Cal Skate.
No arrests were reported Friday morning. Detectives have not yet publicly speculated on a motive.
Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Ryan Smith or Sgt. Jason Radeleff at 909-387-3589.
