Hundreds at vigil mourn six Allen family members found dead in home on Monday

Hundreds gathered at Allen’s Celebration Park on Wednesday evening to mourn the deaths of an Allen family in an apparent murder-suicide over the weekend.

Among those remembering the six Towhid family members were longtime friends, local police officers, City Council members and advocates for mental health reform and gun safety.

Some brought flowers, while others brought candles.

Authorities believe the Towhids died on Saturday. Their boides were found inside their home early Monday morning, just blocks from where the vigil was held.

They were two brothers, a sister, a father and mother, and a grandmother.

Police said they believe the two brothers killed the others, then themselves, as outlined in a note written by the younger brother and posted online prior to their deaths.

Community members said throughout the vigil that the deaths were a tragedy.

Tabassum Munia Ahmad is a member of the area’s Bangladeshi community and helped organize the event.

Holding back tears, she had never met the Towhids but was in pain over their deaths.

“The Bangladeshi community is tight-knit. We’re here to remember,” she told the crowd through a megaphone. She read off the names of each family member.

Police identified those killed as Altafun Nessa, 77; Iren Islam, 56; Towhidul Islam, 54; brothers Tanvir Towhid, 21, and Farhan Towhid, 19; and sister Farbin Towhid, 19.

Several at the vigil who knew the family declined to comment.

A group of Allen High School graduates stood together before the vigil began, sharing their favorite memories of Farbin and Farhan Towhid.

“Hey, you were friends with Farhan, right? Come over here,” a teenage girl invited a stranger as she began to hug and console him.

One recent graduate, who came to the vigil with her sister, knew the twins since they attended Ford Middle School together. Lamiha Hossain, 18, said she was closer with Farbin, who she described as “one of the nicest” people she’d ever met.

“I never heard anything bad about her,” Hossain said.

She said Farbin was “a great artist” who was visiting home from New York University, where she attended an undergraduate program.

Hossain said news of the deaths spread quickly throughout the city’s Bangladeshi community. She said she feels that it was wrong for people to spread the online note posted by Farhan Towhid, which has since been removed.

“It just feels wrong that everyone is reading this,” she said.

Mayor Ken Fulk — who said he had no personal connection with the family — stood with the mourning crowd.

“Part of our community is hurting right now. We’re here to share that grief,” Fulk said of him and other council members in attendance.

Fulk said that in the wake of the deaths, the city will host a town hall forum on mental health reform within the next several weeks.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 24-hour crisis hotline at 1-800-273-8255. Confidential online chat is available at suicidepreventionlifeline.org

Crisis Text Line: 24-hour support by texting HOME to 741741. More information at crisistextline.org

North Texas Behavioral Health Authority: 24-hour crisis hotline at 1-866-260-8000 or go to ntbha.org

Suicide and Crisis Center of North Texas: Speak to a trained counselor on the 24-hour hotline at 214-828-1000 or 800-273-8255 or go to sccenter.org

Here For Texas Mental Health Navigation Line: Grant Halliburton Foundation initiative that connects North Texans with mental-health resources customized to each caller at 972-525-8181 or go to HereForTexas.com

Dallas Metrocare Services: For help, call 1-877-283-2121 or go to metrocareservices.org