‘Funniest mother ever’: GoFundMe set up for Tonganoxie mother of 4 killed in shooting

Angela Santiago, 45, was a kind and funny mother of four, family said in a GoFundMe post set up for her funeral expenses.

Santiago, who family refer to as Angela Cornacchio, on the GoFundMe page, was found shot inside a vehicle shortly before 1:30 a.m. over the weekend in Olathe.

“We lost our mother due to gun violence,” Santiago’s oldest daughter Angela Paez wrote on the fundraising page. “Not only did she leave behind four beautiful children, Angie (26), Yuly (21), Sophie (17) , and Jacob (8) she leaves behind a lot of broken hearts as well.”

As of Tuesday just before noon, the GoFundMe page had raised $4,915 of the $12,000 fundraising goal and 97 people had donated.

“She was a true character herself, lived life to the fullest with no regrets always cheering her kids on, she was the kindest and most funniest mother ever.” Paez wrote. “We will truly miss her and we are heart broken that she was taken so soon.”

Santiago and was found in the vehicle with 42-year-old Jose Arellano-Rascon in the 1000 block of East Fredrickson Drive, near the intersection of East Cedar and South Sunset streets. Both were fatally shot and pronounced dead at the scene, Olathe police said in a news release.

Police said they believe the shooting was targeted and that a truck followed the couple to the location of the shooting. The suspects were described as four or five males in a pickup truck.

“We don’t have any information that would lead us to believe this is a random act of violence,” said Sgt. Joel Yeldell, a spokesman with the Olathe Police Department. “We do have reason to believe that there was some kind of relationship there, whether known or unknown.”

The department on Sunday released a photo of the suspect vehicle, a gray Ford F-150.

The truck has a covered bed, tinted windows, six-starred wheels and running boards under the doors. Anyone who sees a truck matching the description should call 911 and not approach the vehicle.

The homicides were Olathe’s first of 2021. Olathe saw two killings in 2020, according to data maintained by The Star.

Police ask anyone who lives in the general area and who have a home surveillance system to check their video for the truck from 12:45 a.m. to about 1:30 on Nov. 20.

Anyone with information may call the Olathe Police Department at 913-971-6363 or the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477.

This story was originally published November 23, 2021 at 11:44 AM.