Protester killed at Utah 'No Kings' rally was a fashion designer from
'Project Runway'
[June 17, 2025]
By SAFIYAH RIDDLE and HANNAH SCHOENBAUM
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The man shot and killed while participating in the
“No Kings” protest in Salt Lake City was a successful fashion designer
and former “Project Runway” contestant who devoted his life to
celebrating artists from the Pacific Islands.
Arthur Folasa Ah Loo, 39, was killed Saturday night when two men shot at
a person allegedly brandishing a rifle at demonstrators, and one
accidentally struck Ah Loo in the stomach, authorities said. Ah Loo
later died at the hospital.
Salt Lake City police said it remained unclear Monday whether the
individuals, one of whom identified himself as part of a “peacekeeping"
team for the protest, were brought in by the event organizers or acted
on their own initiative.
Arturo Gamboa, 24, never shot the rifle he pointed at protesters, but
police arrested him on murder charges and said he created the dangerous
situation that led to Ah Loo’s death. Police said they were
investigating whether the man who shot at Gamboa — and fatally hit Ah
Loo — was justified in firing his gun. He has not been identified
publicly.
Victim was a self-taught designer
Ah Loo leaves behind a wife and two young children, according to a
GoFundMe page for his family that raised over $100,000 in 48 hours.
The self-taught fashion designer known to many as Afa devoted his life
to doing “good things for his neighbors and community," state Rep.
Verona Mauga, a close friend, told The Associated Press. Their families
were from the small village of Lotopa in Samoa, she said.
Ah Loo was born in Samoa and has lived in Utah for about a decade, his
friend Benjamin Powell said.
Mauga, who was born in Hawaii, was at the “No Kings" protest a few
blocks from where Ah Loo was shot. The Democratic lawmaker said she only
realized something was wrong when she saw the crowd scattering.
Peaceful protest turns deadly
The protest Saturday was one of hundreds in cities nationwide to counter
President Donald Trump’s military parade in Washington, which marked the
Army’s 250th anniversary and coincided with Trump’s birthday.
There is no record in the Salt Lake City event permit indicating that
armed security would be present, police said.
Carl Moore, a 49-year-old Indigenous advocate, was filming the protest
when three gunshots rang out through the crowd estimated at 10,000
people. Moore said he observed confusion among police as protesters hid
behind barriers and took shelter inside parking garages and nearby
businesses.
“They don’t know what they’re looking for. They’re just yelling like,
‘What does he look like?’” Moore recalled.
Weaving culture and community through fashion
Mauga said Ah Loo would have been proud that his last moments were spent
advocating for what he believed in.
“If Afa was going to go out any other way than natural causes, it would
be standing up for marginalized and vulnerable communities and making
sure that people had a voice,” she said.
Powell, a hair salon innovator from Fiji, co-founded Create Pacific with
Ah Loo shortly after they met four years ago. The organization uplifts
artists from the Pacific Islands, allowing a new generation to connect
with their heritage.
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This undated photo shows Utah State Rep. Verona Mauga and Arthur Afa
Ah Loo. (Mauga via AP)
 The two artists were friends with a
rare creative synergy, Powell said. Ah Loo's vibrant work weaves
traditional Pacific Island attire with modern silhouettes and
design. He used flowers indigenous to Samoa as motifs and frequently
incorporated Tapa, a cloth traditionally made from tree bark in the
Pacific Islands, into the garments he created.
Powell admired Ah Loo's attention to detail that made his work
distinctive.
“You would know right away that it was an Ah Loo design,” he said.
Ah Loo was a contestant in 2019 on Bravo’s “Project Runway,” a
reality show where fashion designers compete in front of celebrity
judges to create runway looks on tight deadlines.
Recently, he designed a garment for the star of the animated Disney
movie “Moana 2,” Hawaiian actor Auliʻi Cravalho. According to an
interview with Vogue, Cravalho wore the outfit inspired by the
Hawaiian ʻahu ʻula — a feather cloak worn by ancient Hawaiian
royalty — to the film's red carpet premiere in Hawaii last November.
A posthumous honor
In an Instagram post Monday, Cravalho said there were “no words to
hold the grief of losing” Ah Loo.
“My deepest condolences, sympathies and Aloha to his family, and all
who felt his impact," Cravalho wrote.
Powell and Ah Loo were working on an upcoming August fashion show
when he died. Powell said the show will continue and will honor Ah
Loo’s unwavering commitment to his community.
Ah Loo also volunteered his time and resources to tailor clothing
for people who needed help, often refusing to let people compensate
him for his work, Mauga said. Sometimes, he would playfully
criticize the outfits the state lawmaker wore on the campaign trail
and invite her to his studio so he could make her new blazers or
dresses.
“He was just very involved in whatever was going on in the
community," Mauga said. “He cared about making a difference.”
___
Riddle reported from Montgomery, Alabama. Associated Press writers
Jesse Bedayn in Denver and Beatrice Dupuy in New York City
contributed reporting.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved
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