Partahi Lumbantoruan's family said they sold off property and cars to pay his tuition and that his goal was to become a teacher in the United States.

Lumbantoruan, a 34-year-old doctoral student from Indonesia, had been studying civil engineering at Virginia Tech for three years, said his father, Tohom Lumbantoruan, a 66-year-old retired army officer.

"We tried everything to completely finance his studies in the United States," he said. "We only wanted him to succeed in his studies, but ... he met a tragic fate."

His stepmother, Sugiyarti, said he had called almost daily to talk to the family. (Like many Indonesians she goes by one name.) In their last conversation, he had asked for the latest news on Indonesian politics.

"Why can people bring guns to campus?" she asked, weeping. "How is it possible that so many innocent people could be killed? How could it happen?"

An aunt, 53-year-old Christina Panjaitan, said her nephew was hardworking, intelligent and never complained. "He told me he wanted to teach in America," she said.

Family members were planning a public burial in the capital, Jakarta.

 -- The Associated Press