Los Angeles: At least ten people were killed and 10 others were injured when a gunman opened fire in the US city of Monterey Park in Californias Los Angeles County on Saturday, during the celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Years Eve.
The shooting took place at about 22:20 local time at a ballroom dance studio in Monterey Park on Saturday night, the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department said, reported Los Angeles Times.
The shooter fled and remains outstanding, the sheriffs department said.
According to CNN, shortly after the attack, a group of people disarmed a gunman who showed up at a studio in neighboring Alhambra. Officials are still investigating whether the two incidents are linked, it said.
NEW: Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna says the suspect in the Monterey Park shooting still hasnt been arrested with witnesses providing different descriptions of one suspect.
We are utilizing every resource to apprehend this suspect, Luna says. pic.twitter.com/NQXHyHoDnO
CBS News (@CBSNews) January 22, 2023
Firefighters pronounced 10 of the victims dead at the scene, sheriffs capt. Andrew Meyer told Los Angeles Times.
At least 10 others were taken to numerous local hospitals, and their conditions range from stable to critical.
Jill and I are praying for those killed and injured in last nights deadly mass shooting in Monterey Park.
Im monitoring this situation closely as it develops, and urge the community to follow guidance from local officials and law enforcement in the hours ahead.
President Biden (@POTUS) January 22, 2023
Meyer said investigators dont know whether the victims were targeted. He said it was too early to know whether the shooting was a hate crime. We will look at every angle, he said.
Its still too soon to rule out hate crime as a possible motive for the deadly Monterey Park, California, mass shooting, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said, according to CNN.
Seung Won Choi, who owns a seafood barbecue restaurant on Garvey Avenue across from where the shooting happened, told Los Angeles Times that three people rushed into his restaurant and told him to lock the door.
Ten dead in Monterey Park. I am sickened.
A horrific example of needless gun violence. With bigotry toward AAPI individuals as a possible motive.
The families are in my prayers as we seek information by law enforcement.
Well never quit demanding real action on gun safety.
Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) January 22, 2023
They said there was a man with a semiautomatic gun in the area. The shooter, they said, had multiple rounds of ammunition on him, so that once his ammunition ran out he reloaded, Choi said.
*UPD* #LASD Homicide Detectives Continue Assisting Monterey Park PD w/ Shooting Death Invst. -https://t.co/hwdU2fW12T
LA County Sheriffs (@LASDHQ) January 22, 2023
PRESS RELEASE UPDATE BY LASD
Los Angeles County Sheriffs Homicide investigators are continuing their investigation into the circumstances regarding a mass shooting in the city of Monterey Park.
On Saturday, January 21, 2023, at approximately 10:22 pm, officers from the Monterey Park Police Department responded to a business in the 100 block of West Garvey Avenue in the city of Monterey Park regarding a shots fired call.
When officers arrived at the location, they observed numerous victims and patrons in the parking lot of the business. Additional officers made entry into the business and located numerous gunshot victims. Monterey Park Fire Department responded to the scene and treated the injured. They pronounced ten of the victims deceased at the scene.
There were at least ten additional victims transported to numerous local hospitals. They are listed in various conditions from stable to critical.
The suspect fled the scene and remains outstanding.
LASD Homicide is working closely with the Monterey Park Police Department, California Governors Office of Emergency Services, the FBI Los Angeles Field Office and numerous other law enforcement agencies.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Or if you prefer to remain anonymous you can call crime stoppers at 800-222-8477.
