Thousands attend funeral for Pakistani exchange student killed in Santa Fe school shooting
The body of a 17-year-old exchange student from Pakistan killed in the Santa Fe High School mass shooting has returned home.
Sabika Sheikh, among the 10 students and staff killed in Friday's massacre in Texas, was laid to rest Wednesday in her hometown of Karachi. Thousands of people attended her funeral, The Associated Press reported.
The teen's father, Abdul Aziz Sheikh, went to the Karachi airport earlier on Wednesday to receive the body of his oldest child, the AP said.
Sheikh said he wants the loss of his daughter to lead to stricter gun control laws in the United States, the AP reported.
Sabika had been determined to bring her native country closer to America, the Texas family who took her in told mourners at her funeral in the U.S. on Sunday.
"She was the most beautiful, loving person I've ever met," said Jaelyn Cogburn, whose family took in Sabika six months ago as part of the Youth Exchange and Study program sponsored by the U.S. State Department.
"She was so loyal to her faith, her country and she only had good things to say about everybody," Jaelyn said. "She loved her family. She couldn't wait to see them, and she loved us."
Jaelyn's mother, Joleen Cogburn, recalled a conversation she had with Sabika when she first came to live in her home.
"I asked her how she got involved with wanting to become a foreign exchange student and why, and she said, 'Because I want to learn the American culture and I want America to learn the Pakistan culture and I want us to come together and unite,'" Cogburn said. "She wanted to be a businesswoman and she said she wanted to impact the world, and I think she's done that."
Cogburn's husband, Jason Cogburn, said that in the short time Sabika lived with them, she became as close as one of his daughters.
"We had no idea what God was going to send us, but he sent us one of the most precious gifts I've ever had in life," Jason Cogburn said.
ABC News' Bill Hutchinson contributed to this report.
