A Utah teen who survived a 2024 shooting in which his father allegedly killed his entire family died unexpectedly on Jan. 11 at his aunt and uncle’s home.
Sha Reh, 19, died just one week after he had started college at the University of Utah, according to a statement released by his family. The teen, who was a first-generation college student, planned to earn his education and then enroll in law school. The teen’s family said they felt “profound sadness” at his death in the same statement, which appears on a GoFundMe fundraiser to support the financial cost of his funeral and memorial.
Reh was the sole survivor of a December 2024 shooting in which his father allegedly shot him, his mother and three siblings before turning the gun on himself, KSL reported. Reh was 17 years old at the time of the incident and was shot in the head. The shooting left the teen blind, according to FOX 13 Now.
The West Valley Police responded on Dec. 16, 2024 after receiving a call from a concerned family member, FOX 13 Now reported at the time. Officers tried to contact the residents, but no one answered. They also looked inside the windows of the home and found no obvious signs of a crime or an emergency, so they did not enter the home.
When the teen’s mother did not show up for work the next day, the same concerned family member went to the house and entered through the garage. The family member discovered Reh had been injured from a gunshot wound and called the police around 2 p.m., according to the outlet. Officers responded to the home, where they found five people deceased. A small handgun was discovered underneath the body of the teen’s father, Dae Reh, police said.
Reh was hospitalized and in critical condition with a brain injury as a result of the incident, according to FOX 13 Now. (RELATED: ‘You’re Gonna Give Me My Son’: Secretary Hailed As Hero After Banned Parent Allegedly Shows Up To School With Gun)
Despite his injuries, Reh “overcame numerous obstacles on his pathway to healing,” his family said in the same statement. In January 2025, the teen enrolled in the Utah School for the Deaf and Blind, where “he learned to communicate in Braille and live independently.”
“While we are devastated at the news of his death, the knowledge of the joy of his reunion with his family exceeds our pain. He was among those who were once blind, but now can see. He has a perfect vision of his and his family’s eternity, and his home is now with them,” his family continued.
Reh and his family immigrated to the U.S. from Myanmar and were baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints nearly 10 years ago, KSL reported.
Ahead of his death, Reh told the outlet that he “[strives] to do good things in the world” and cited his faith as a source of positivity in his life.
Reh died of natural causes, his family said.
