Niece Of Actress Tamera Mowry-Housley Among 12 Victims Of Thousand Oaks Bar Shooting

Actress Tamera Mowry-Housley and her husband, journalist Adam Housley, have confirmed that their niece Alaina Housley was among the 12 victims who were killed during the Thousand Oaks shooting on Wednesday night. The couple had previously taken to social media to ask for help in locating the 19-year-old student, who was last seen at the location of the shooting but whose whereabouts had been unknown for hours afterward.

"Our hearts are broken. We just learned that our niece Alaina was one of the victims of last night’s shooting at Borderline bar in Thousand Oaks," reads a statement from the couple obtained by USA Today. "Alaina was an incredible young woman with so much life ahead of her and we are devastated that her life was cut short in this manner. We thank everyone for your prayers and ask for privacy at this time."

A man later identified as 28-year-old Ian David Long, a former Marine, walked into the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, California on Wednesday night and began shooting at those inside, killing 12 before taking his own life. The attack caused mass chaos in the bar and many were still searching the next day for loved ones who were believed to have been present during the shooting but who had not been accounted for since — including the Housleys, who shared via Twitter on Thursday that they were waiting to hear from their niece.

In response to a tweet posted by someone seeking information on their suitemate’s whereabouts, Mowry-Housley responded, writing, “Ashely this is her aunt Tamera Mowry Housley. Can you please DM me your information?”

The student replied, letting Mowry-Housley know that she had been in contact with Adam but “unfortunately there’s nothing new to report at the moment.”

Alaina Housley, an 18-year-old freshman at Pepperdine University, went out line dancing with friends the night of the shooting; of her group, she was the only one who remained unaccounted for the following morning, according to her suitemate’s tweets.

Adam Housley, a former senior correspondent for Fox News, told the Los Angeles Times that two of his niece’s suitemates escaped the bar through a broken window but lost track of Alaina in the confusion. Both her Apple Watch and her iPhone still showed the bar’s dance floor as her location, according to the outlet.

When Housley tried to get into the Los Robles Regional Medical Center early Thursday morning to see if his niece was there, he was turned away by security, who informed him that the building was on lockdown, the Los Angeles Times reports.

“My gut is saying she’s inside the bar, dead,” Housley said, according to the Times. “I’m hoping I’m wrong.”

As they awaited new information, the Housleys asked for prayers on social media.

“We haven’t found her yet. It’s been 7 hrs since the shooting,” Mowry-Housley wrote at around 8 a.m. on Thursday morning.

“Staying positive and praying and hoping and wishing there was more I could do,” Adam Housley wrote later.

Mowry-Housley’s twin sister Tia Mowry shared a photo of her and her sister posing with Alaina at Tamera’s wedding, writing in the caption, “Alaina Housely we are praying. We love u! If you know anything or any information please let us know. We love you!”

[Photo: Getty Images]