A 72-year-old gunman killed himself when approached by police on Sunday, about 12 hours after he had carried out a massacre at a dance club during Chinese New Year celebrations that left 10 people dead and another 10 wounded.
The gunman tried to carry out another shooting at a separate club just minutes after the first one on Saturday night, but authorities said two bystanders wrestled the man’s weapon away from him before any shots could be fired. He fled that scene.
The massacre sent a wave of fear through Asian American communities in the region and cast a shadow over festivities nationwide. The shooting was the nation’s fifth mass killing this month, according to AP. It was also the deadliest attack since May 24, when 21 people were killed in an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna identified the man as 72-year-old Huu Can Tran and said no other suspects were at large. Luna said the motive remained unclear for the attack. Speaking at a Sunday evening news conference, the sheriff said he didn’t have their exact ages of these victims but that all of the people killed appeared to be over 50.
The suspect was carrying what Luna described as a semi-automatic pistol with an extended magazine, and a second handgun was discovered in the van where Tran died.
Monterey Park Police Chief Scott Wiese said Sunday evening that within three minutes of receiving the call, officers arrived at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park. There, they found carnage inside and people trying to flee through all the doors.
