Los Angeles Dance studio shooting suspect found dead

On Jan 23, 2023

California police identified the gunman suspected of killing ten people in a ballroom dance studio near Los Angeles as Huu Can Tran, a 72-year-old man who was later found dead in a white van.

The LA County Sheriff Robert Luna, who confirmed this said the suspect had a self-inflicted gunshot wound and was declared dead at the scene, said.

He added that the ten people who died were still being identified, but they “seem to be probably in their 50s, 60s and some maybe even beyond there.”

Earlier, officials said five women and five men were killed, probably of Asian descent. All this happened as celebrations for Lunar New Year were underway in Monterey Park, known for its large Asian population.

Recall that another ten people were wounded in the shooting, and seven are still in hospital – some in critical condition – the sheriff said at a news conference on Sunday afternoon in Monterey Park.

The mass shooting, one of the deadliest in California’s history, began at around 22:22 local time on Saturday (06:22 GMT on Sunday) at the famous Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park, about seven miles (11km) east of central Los Angeles.

Police Chief Scott Wiese said that his officers found a “scene of carnage” and that the first officers to get there were some of the youngest on his squad, having just finished their training a few months ago.

“They came across a scene none of them had prepared for. There were injured people inside and dead people inside. My young officers did their job,” he said.

About 30 minutes later, the gunman arrived at another dance studio in the nearby town of Alhambra. He entered the studio, but two people wrestled the weapon off him – a semi-automatic assault pistol with an extended magazine – and he escaped.

Sheriff Luna said he believed the weapon was illegal in California, although he added he needed to investigate that further. He praised the “two community members, who I consider being heroes. They saved lives, this could’ve been much worse,” the sheriff said, adding that he believes Tran intended to kill more people.

For hours on Sunday, authorities scoured the Los Angeles area searching for the gunman. Police issued photos of the suspect during the chase. Just before 13:00 local time (21:00 GMT) – about 12 hours after the shooting – a SWAT team swarmed a white van in a car park in Torrance, about 30 miles (48km) from the Monterey Park shooting scene.

Sheriff Luna said they heard a single shot from inside the van as they approached and found the suspect slumped over the steering wheel. Evidence, including a handgun, was recovered, and the man was identified as the gunman.

The sheriff said the gunman is believed to have acted alone, and there were no other suspects. He said police assumed the number plates on the van were stolen.

Monterey Park’s population is about 65% Asian American – it has been called America’s first ‘Chinese suburb.’ It became the first mainland US city to have a majority of residents with Asian ancestry. The Monterey Park celebrations of the Lunar New Year were cancelled, with a community in mourning. Businesses began removing the red lanterns and festive banners that had adorned the streets.

BBC/S.O