More on Murder of Acting AG Rachelle Bergeron in Yap, Micronesia
American Prosecutor Rachelle Bergeron Shot Dead With Her Dog in Micronesia
Jamie Ross
Reporter
Updated 10.15.19 6:34AM ET /
Published 10.15.19 6:26AM ET
American lawyer Rachelle Bergeron was shot and killed Monday night as she returned home from a run with her dog in the Pacific nation of Micronesia. The killing has shocked the tiny island of Yap, home to just 11,000 people, where Bergeron had been prosecuting criminals in her role as acting attorney general. ABC News reports Bergeron’s husband was inside the couple’s house baking brownies with a local child the couple was helping care for when three shots were fired at Bergeron outside, killing both her and her dog, according to family friend Amos Collins. Collins added he doesn’t know who shot Bergeron but that some of those she had prosecuted might hold grudges. “Yap’s spirit is broken and our pride and reputation is tarnished,” said Constantine Yowbalaw, the director of youth and civic affairs for Yap State. The couple was reportedly about to celebrate their one-year wedding anniversary and hoped to start a family soon.
Read it at ABC News
https://www.thedailybeast.com/rachelle-bergeron-shot-dead-with-her-dog-in-micronesia
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'She loved to defend those who were mistreated': A lawyer and Waukesha native was killed in Micronesia
Hannah Kirby, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Published 2:29 p.m. CT Oct. 15, 2019 | Updated 10:41 p.m. CT Oct. 15, 2019
Simon Hammerling and Rachelle Bergeron got married in Yap on Oct. 25, 2018.
Lawyer Rachelle Bergeron, a Waukesha native, was killed in the Pacific nation of Micronesia on Monday night.
She was returning home when somebody fired three shots at her, killing both her and her dog, according to the Associated Press.
Rachelle's father, Thomas Bergeron of Germantown, said he received a text from his daughter's husband, Simon Hammerling, saying that Rachelle had been shot and to pray for her on the morning of Oct. 14, which was around 7 p.m. in Yap, an island group in Micronesia.
Hammerling called Amos Collins, a family friend, a few minutes after the shooting. Collins and a nurse used a blanket to move Bergeron onto his flatbed truck and drove her to the hospital.
Rachelle, 33, was pronounced dead on arrival at Yap Memorial Hospital.
Thomas said he was in shock and disbelief when he got the news from Hammerling.
"It's been a very, very difficult time to lose someone like her," Thomas said.
Rachelle's vitality, love and kindness are what he'll miss most.
"She was very loving and cared about people, and was a good person to have on your team," Thomas said.
Rachelle moved to Yap in 2015 to take a job as assistant attorney general. In January, she began serving as acting attorney general of Yap State.
This August 2015 photo posted on Facebook shows Rachelle Bergeron at a desk after taking on her new role as assistant attorney general of Yap State, on the Federated States of Micronesia. Bergeron was shot and killed outside her home on Oct. 14, 2019, in Yap.
Simon, a missionary pilot with Pacific Mission Aviation, and Rachelle got married in Yap on Oct. 25, 2018.
They had been helping to care for two girls on the island, Deesha, 12, and Heydee, 6, Thomas said.
"She really loved those girls and invested in them like they were her own kids," he said. "They were a big part of her life there."
Rachelle grew up as the oldest of four in Waukesha, then went on to attend the University of Florida's Fredric G. Levin College of Law.
"She was very courageous," Thomas said. "She loved to defend those who were mistreated and was willing to take a stand for them."
He said his daughter has always been that way.
She previously worked with the International Justice Mission and Sanctuary for Families on human trafficking. She had lived in Washington, D.C., New York and India.
Rachelle had just been back to Wisconsin in September, Thomas said. During her visit they went on bike rides together, and she visited with her grandparents and siblings.
She was finishing her work in Yap, and was planning to move to Cheyenne, Wyoming, with Hammerling, her father said.
"We had been on the phone with her the night before," Thomas said. "We talked about when she was going to move and where she was going to move to. That was the last we talked to her."
Thomas said he is taking comfort in knowing that September wasn't the last time he'll see his daughter.
"We're thrilled she was a believer in Christ and know that he's the resurrection," he said. "So we're excited to see her again."
Thomas said memorial services are being planned in Yap as well as Brookside Baptist Church in Brookfield, where Thomas and his wife, Tamara, have attended for about 20 years.
A GoFundMe has been created to help cover funeral costs and travel expenses to the United States, where Rachelle will be laid to rest.
"Those of you who know Simon know of his deep faith in God and commitment to serving others," said the organizer of the fundraiser, Joe Adams, on the site. "We have all benefited from his good advice, his prayers and his care for us. Now it is time for us to return some of what he has given in a small way."
The GoFundMe's goal is to raise $20,000. As of Oct. 15, $14,965 had already been raised. The fundraiser can be found at gofundme.com/f/rachelle-haemmerling-funeral-costs.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Contact Hannah Kirby at hannah.kirby@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HannahHopeKirby.
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northwest/news/2019/10/15/lawyer-rachelle-bergeron-waukesha-native-killed-yap/3986714002/
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US attorney working as a prosecutor in Micronesia killed outside her home
Lauren M Johnson
By Lauren M. Johnson, CNN
Updated 2247 GMT (0647 HKT) October 15, 2019
Rachelle Bergeron was a human rights lawyer before moving to Micronesia to work as an assistant attorney general.
(CNN)A New York attorney serving as an acting attorney general in the Federated States of Micronesia was gunned down outside her home on Monday, the state confirmed to CNN.
Rachelle Bergeron was shot around 7 p.m. as she returned from her daily jog to her home on the island of Yap, according to Henry Falan, the island's governor.
Her husband, Simon Haemmerling, was home and heard the shots, Falan said. He and a neighbor took her to Yap Memorial Hospital, but Bergeron was pronounced dead on arrival, he said.
Bergeron moved to the island in 2015 to be the assistant attorney general for Yap, one of four islands that make up the Federated States of Micronesia. She was serving as Yap's acting attorney general when she was killed.
Falan released a video statement on Facebook expressing his deep concern for the tragedy.
"Today marks a sad day in our history," he said. "Her loss will be greatly felt by all who knew her. Yap's spirit is broken by this senseless and heinous act. As governor of the state of Yap, I promise to do everything in my power to have justice prevail."
The governor said Bergeron's death is under investigation by local police. The FBI is sending a team to Yap to aid the investigation, said Special Agent Jason White, a spokesman for the bureau's Honolulu field office.
Bergeron is originally from Wisconsin and a member of the New York Bar. She has previously worked in New York, Washington, DC, and in South Asia, and received her law degree in 2010 from the University of Florida, according to her LinkedIn profile.
She and her husband were getting ready to celebrate their one-year wedding anniversary, according to Joe Adams, a friend of Haemmerling's. Adams created a GoFundMe to help pay for funeral expenses, including transporting her body back to the US for burial.
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/15/us/rachelle-bergeron-shot-and-killed-trnd/index.html
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Rachelle Bergeron talked with dad about moving home hours before her death in Micronesia
By Jackie Salo October 16, 2019 | 9:41am | Updated
Rachelle Bergeron was shot and killed on the tiny Pacific island of Yap.
The slain American prosecutor who was shot dead on a tiny Pacific island spoke to her dad the night before she died about her plans to move back stateside, according to report.
Former NYC lawyer shot dead on tiny island where she was attorney general
Rachelle Bergeron, who served as acting attorney general on the remote island of Yap, was fatally shot in the chest and leg Monday night upon returning home with her dog, officials said.
The married 33-year-old worked as a human rights lawyer in Manhattan before moving to the island destination in 2015.
Her father, Thomas Bergeron, said he was in disbelief and had spoken to his daughter the evening before she was gunned down, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
In their final conversation, Rachelle talked about leaving her job and moving with her husband, Simon Hammerling, to Cheyenne, Wyoming.
“We had been on the phone with her the night before,” Thomas told the newspaper. “We talked about when she was going to move and where she was going to move to. That was the last we talked to her.”
He said his daughter was “very courageous” and “loved to defend those who were mistreated.”
“It’s been a very, very difficult time to lose someone like her,” Thomas said.
No motive has been identified in the fatal shooting, but the FBI has launched an investigation on the island.
Yap is situated about 4,500 miles west of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean and is part of the Federated States of Micronesia.
https://nypost.com/2019/10/16/american-killed-on-pacific-island-talked-with-dad-about-moving-home-hours-before-her-death/
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The acting attorney general of Yap in the Federated States of Micronesia was killed in an attack Monday night, Yap Department of Youth and Civic Affairs Director Constantine Yowbalaw confirmed Tuesday morning.
Yap Acting Attorney General Rachelle Bergeron was pronounced dead upon arrival at Yap Memorial Hospital Monday evening, Yowbalaw said in a telephone interview.
"Yap's community and spirit is broken," Yowbalaw said. "Yap's pride and reputation is tarnished."
Attack happened at residence
The FBI will be sending a team to Yap as quickly as possible to assist the Yap police in the investigation, FBI spokesperson Michelle Ernst said on Tuesday,
The attack happened at about 7 p.m, Monday, at Bergeron's residence, Yowbalaw said, adding that Yap police are investigating the crime.
"Our prayers are with her family, friends and community here and abroad," Yowbalaw told Pacific Daily News.
Bergeron first arrived in Yap in August 2015, to work as assistant attorney general. She became acting attorney general in January. Bergeron, a member of the State Bar of California, went to the University of Florida College of Law.
When asked about media reports that the acting general was killed by a gunshot wound in front of her residence, Yowbalaw said the only official information he could share at this time is that Bergeron was attacked and killed.
"I'm working with investigators to confirm other details," he said. Motive for the attack is also unknown at this time, he said.
'Senseless, tragic act'
A GoFundMe site was established by Joe Adams, of Washington, to raise $20,000 to help with Bergeron's funeral costs and travel costs to the United States where she will be laid to rest.
"In a senseless and tragic act, Rachelle Bergeron (Haemmerling), acting AG for Yap, Micronesia, was shot and killed in her yard last evening as she took care of her dogs," Adams wrote.
Bergeron and her husband, Simon, according to Adams, were a few days away from their first wedding anniversary.
"We grieve with Simon in his terrible loss and pray that he will have strength through the loss of his best friend and the person that had brought him so much joy and true happiness," Adams wrote in the GoFundMe site.
https://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2019/10/15/yap-acting-ag-rachelle-bergeron-killed-attack-fbi-helps-probe/3981762002/?fbclid=IwAR3J7pjdA3H9kfRz3NGYILhy7p32NmjEC2C42utpdrVFHF5hr0mXQEiy8Ow
Jamie Ross
Reporter
Updated 10.15.19 6:34AM ET /
Published 10.15.19 6:26AM ET
American lawyer Rachelle Bergeron was shot and killed Monday night as she returned home from a run with her dog in the Pacific nation of Micronesia. The killing has shocked the tiny island of Yap, home to just 11,000 people, where Bergeron had been prosecuting criminals in her role as acting attorney general. ABC News reports Bergeron’s husband was inside the couple’s house baking brownies with a local child the couple was helping care for when three shots were fired at Bergeron outside, killing both her and her dog, according to family friend Amos Collins. Collins added he doesn’t know who shot Bergeron but that some of those she had prosecuted might hold grudges. “Yap’s spirit is broken and our pride and reputation is tarnished,” said Constantine Yowbalaw, the director of youth and civic affairs for Yap State. The couple was reportedly about to celebrate their one-year wedding anniversary and hoped to start a family soon.
Read it at ABC News
https://www.thedailybeast.com/rachelle-bergeron-shot-dead-with-her-dog-in-micronesia
------------------------------------------------------------
'She loved to defend those who were mistreated': A lawyer and Waukesha native was killed in Micronesia
Hannah Kirby, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Published 2:29 p.m. CT Oct. 15, 2019 | Updated 10:41 p.m. CT Oct. 15, 2019
Simon Hammerling and Rachelle Bergeron got married in Yap on Oct. 25, 2018.
Lawyer Rachelle Bergeron, a Waukesha native, was killed in the Pacific nation of Micronesia on Monday night.
She was returning home when somebody fired three shots at her, killing both her and her dog, according to the Associated Press.
Rachelle's father, Thomas Bergeron of Germantown, said he received a text from his daughter's husband, Simon Hammerling, saying that Rachelle had been shot and to pray for her on the morning of Oct. 14, which was around 7 p.m. in Yap, an island group in Micronesia.
Hammerling called Amos Collins, a family friend, a few minutes after the shooting. Collins and a nurse used a blanket to move Bergeron onto his flatbed truck and drove her to the hospital.
Rachelle, 33, was pronounced dead on arrival at Yap Memorial Hospital.
Thomas said he was in shock and disbelief when he got the news from Hammerling.
"It's been a very, very difficult time to lose someone like her," Thomas said.
Rachelle's vitality, love and kindness are what he'll miss most.
"She was very loving and cared about people, and was a good person to have on your team," Thomas said.
Rachelle moved to Yap in 2015 to take a job as assistant attorney general. In January, she began serving as acting attorney general of Yap State.
This August 2015 photo posted on Facebook shows Rachelle Bergeron at a desk after taking on her new role as assistant attorney general of Yap State, on the Federated States of Micronesia. Bergeron was shot and killed outside her home on Oct. 14, 2019, in Yap.
Simon, a missionary pilot with Pacific Mission Aviation, and Rachelle got married in Yap on Oct. 25, 2018.
They had been helping to care for two girls on the island, Deesha, 12, and Heydee, 6, Thomas said.
"She really loved those girls and invested in them like they were her own kids," he said. "They were a big part of her life there."
Rachelle grew up as the oldest of four in Waukesha, then went on to attend the University of Florida's Fredric G. Levin College of Law.
"She was very courageous," Thomas said. "She loved to defend those who were mistreated and was willing to take a stand for them."
He said his daughter has always been that way.
She previously worked with the International Justice Mission and Sanctuary for Families on human trafficking. She had lived in Washington, D.C., New York and India.
Rachelle had just been back to Wisconsin in September, Thomas said. During her visit they went on bike rides together, and she visited with her grandparents and siblings.
She was finishing her work in Yap, and was planning to move to Cheyenne, Wyoming, with Hammerling, her father said.
"We had been on the phone with her the night before," Thomas said. "We talked about when she was going to move and where she was going to move to. That was the last we talked to her."
Thomas said he is taking comfort in knowing that September wasn't the last time he'll see his daughter.
"We're thrilled she was a believer in Christ and know that he's the resurrection," he said. "So we're excited to see her again."
Thomas said memorial services are being planned in Yap as well as Brookside Baptist Church in Brookfield, where Thomas and his wife, Tamara, have attended for about 20 years.
A GoFundMe has been created to help cover funeral costs and travel expenses to the United States, where Rachelle will be laid to rest.
"Those of you who know Simon know of his deep faith in God and commitment to serving others," said the organizer of the fundraiser, Joe Adams, on the site. "We have all benefited from his good advice, his prayers and his care for us. Now it is time for us to return some of what he has given in a small way."
The GoFundMe's goal is to raise $20,000. As of Oct. 15, $14,965 had already been raised. The fundraiser can be found at gofundme.com/f/rachelle-haemmerling-funeral-costs.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Contact Hannah Kirby at hannah.kirby@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HannahHopeKirby.
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northwest/news/2019/10/15/lawyer-rachelle-bergeron-waukesha-native-killed-yap/3986714002/
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US attorney working as a prosecutor in Micronesia killed outside her home
Lauren M Johnson
By Lauren M. Johnson, CNN
Updated 2247 GMT (0647 HKT) October 15, 2019
Rachelle Bergeron was a human rights lawyer before moving to Micronesia to work as an assistant attorney general.
(CNN)A New York attorney serving as an acting attorney general in the Federated States of Micronesia was gunned down outside her home on Monday, the state confirmed to CNN.
Rachelle Bergeron was shot around 7 p.m. as she returned from her daily jog to her home on the island of Yap, according to Henry Falan, the island's governor.
Her husband, Simon Haemmerling, was home and heard the shots, Falan said. He and a neighbor took her to Yap Memorial Hospital, but Bergeron was pronounced dead on arrival, he said.
Bergeron moved to the island in 2015 to be the assistant attorney general for Yap, one of four islands that make up the Federated States of Micronesia. She was serving as Yap's acting attorney general when she was killed.
Falan released a video statement on Facebook expressing his deep concern for the tragedy.
"Today marks a sad day in our history," he said. "Her loss will be greatly felt by all who knew her. Yap's spirit is broken by this senseless and heinous act. As governor of the state of Yap, I promise to do everything in my power to have justice prevail."
The governor said Bergeron's death is under investigation by local police. The FBI is sending a team to Yap to aid the investigation, said Special Agent Jason White, a spokesman for the bureau's Honolulu field office.
Bergeron is originally from Wisconsin and a member of the New York Bar. She has previously worked in New York, Washington, DC, and in South Asia, and received her law degree in 2010 from the University of Florida, according to her LinkedIn profile.
She and her husband were getting ready to celebrate their one-year wedding anniversary, according to Joe Adams, a friend of Haemmerling's. Adams created a GoFundMe to help pay for funeral expenses, including transporting her body back to the US for burial.
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/15/us/rachelle-bergeron-shot-and-killed-trnd/index.html
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Rachelle Bergeron talked with dad about moving home hours before her death in Micronesia
By Jackie Salo October 16, 2019 | 9:41am | Updated
Rachelle Bergeron was shot and killed on the tiny Pacific island of Yap.
The slain American prosecutor who was shot dead on a tiny Pacific island spoke to her dad the night before she died about her plans to move back stateside, according to report.
Former NYC lawyer shot dead on tiny island where she was attorney general
Rachelle Bergeron, who served as acting attorney general on the remote island of Yap, was fatally shot in the chest and leg Monday night upon returning home with her dog, officials said.
The married 33-year-old worked as a human rights lawyer in Manhattan before moving to the island destination in 2015.
Her father, Thomas Bergeron, said he was in disbelief and had spoken to his daughter the evening before she was gunned down, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
In their final conversation, Rachelle talked about leaving her job and moving with her husband, Simon Hammerling, to Cheyenne, Wyoming.
“We had been on the phone with her the night before,” Thomas told the newspaper. “We talked about when she was going to move and where she was going to move to. That was the last we talked to her.”
He said his daughter was “very courageous” and “loved to defend those who were mistreated.”
“It’s been a very, very difficult time to lose someone like her,” Thomas said.
No motive has been identified in the fatal shooting, but the FBI has launched an investigation on the island.
Yap is situated about 4,500 miles west of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean and is part of the Federated States of Micronesia.
https://nypost.com/2019/10/16/american-killed-on-pacific-island-talked-with-dad-about-moving-home-hours-before-her-death/
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The acting attorney general of Yap in the Federated States of Micronesia was killed in an attack Monday night, Yap Department of Youth and Civic Affairs Director Constantine Yowbalaw confirmed Tuesday morning.
Yap Acting Attorney General Rachelle Bergeron was pronounced dead upon arrival at Yap Memorial Hospital Monday evening, Yowbalaw said in a telephone interview.
"Yap's community and spirit is broken," Yowbalaw said. "Yap's pride and reputation is tarnished."
Attack happened at residence
The FBI will be sending a team to Yap as quickly as possible to assist the Yap police in the investigation, FBI spokesperson Michelle Ernst said on Tuesday,
The attack happened at about 7 p.m, Monday, at Bergeron's residence, Yowbalaw said, adding that Yap police are investigating the crime.
"Our prayers are with her family, friends and community here and abroad," Yowbalaw told Pacific Daily News.
Bergeron first arrived in Yap in August 2015, to work as assistant attorney general. She became acting attorney general in January. Bergeron, a member of the State Bar of California, went to the University of Florida College of Law.
When asked about media reports that the acting general was killed by a gunshot wound in front of her residence, Yowbalaw said the only official information he could share at this time is that Bergeron was attacked and killed.
"I'm working with investigators to confirm other details," he said. Motive for the attack is also unknown at this time, he said.
'Senseless, tragic act'
A GoFundMe site was established by Joe Adams, of Washington, to raise $20,000 to help with Bergeron's funeral costs and travel costs to the United States where she will be laid to rest.
"In a senseless and tragic act, Rachelle Bergeron (Haemmerling), acting AG for Yap, Micronesia, was shot and killed in her yard last evening as she took care of her dogs," Adams wrote.
Bergeron and her husband, Simon, according to Adams, were a few days away from their first wedding anniversary.
"We grieve with Simon in his terrible loss and pray that he will have strength through the loss of his best friend and the person that had brought him so much joy and true happiness," Adams wrote in the GoFundMe site.
https://www.guampdn.com/story/news/2019/10/15/yap-acting-ag-rachelle-bergeron-killed-attack-fbi-helps-probe/3981762002/?fbclid=IwAR3J7pjdA3H9kfRz3NGYILhy7p32NmjEC2C42utpdrVFHF5hr0mXQEiy8Ow