Somali rickshaw driver killed in Mogadishu weeks after U.S. visa lottery win

MOGADISHU, Somalia — A young rickshaw driver who had recently won the U.S. Diversity Visa Lottery was shot and killed late Sunday in Mogadishu’s Dayniile district, police and relatives said, shattering plans to migrate with his pregnant wife and intensifying concern over attacks on transport workers.

Police identified the victim as Abdirisaq Abukar Mohamed. Family members said he was driving his three-wheeled motorized rickshaw when gunmen opened fire, striking him in the chest and throat. He died at the scene.

Somali police said a suspect has been arrested and an investigation is underway, but a motive has not been disclosed. In a statement posted on Facebook, Dayniile district police said officers detained Abdullaahi Ahmed Geedi in connection with the killing. “The suspect is in police custody and will be transferred to the appropriate court,” the statement said.

The killing underscores security worries in Mogadishu, where rickshaw drivers — many of them young men earning a daily wage — have faced sporadic attacks in recent years under unclear circumstances. Authorities did not say whether Sunday’s shooting appeared targeted.

The victim’s wife, Asho Abdi Mohamed, said she learned of her husband’s death minutes after the attack, when someone answered his phone and called the last number he had dialed. “Someone answered his phone and contacted the last person he had called, saying the owner of the phone had been killed,” she said. “That person then reached us, and we went to the area and confirmed his death.”

Abdirisaq’s body remains at Erdogan Hospital, formerly Digfeer Hospital. The family has delayed burial and said they will not proceed until those responsible are identified and brought before the courts. “As long as there is uncertainty about who carried out the killing, the family has decided not to bury him,” said Yusuf Absuge, a relative. “Anyone involved must be held accountable.” No burial date has been announced.

The couple had won selection in the 2025 U.S. Diversity Visa program — commonly known as the green card lottery — after applying in 2024. Asho said she submitted the application and listed her husband as her spouse, and both were notified in May that they had been selected.

They had been scheduled for immigrant visa interviews earlier this month at the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok, Thailand, but postponed until February 2026 because Asho is in the final month of pregnancy. Abdirisaq was killed before the rescheduled appointment. Asked whether she will continue the immigration process alone, Asho said her immediate focus is mourning.

Relatives described Abdirisaq as a hardworking provider who drove a rickshaw to support his family while pursuing studies. He earned a diploma in laboratory science in 2023, attending classes two days a week while working the rest of the time. He and Asho married in July 2024 and were expecting their first child.

Police said their criminal investigations unit continues to examine the circumstances of the attack in Dayniile. They urged the public to remain calm and said additional details would be released as the case progresses.

With files from the BBC Somali Service.

By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.