Seven Chinese farm workers were shot dead in the San Francisco Bay Area, less than 48 hours after the Monterey Park mass shooting. The suspect Chunli Zhao, 67, has been arrested as police continue their investigation and look for a motive. A dramatic video has emerged that captures the moment police took down the suspect following the deadly shooting.
The shootings took place at two separate locations in Half Moon Bay, with three people shot at Mountain Mushroom Farms, and four people shot at a farm run by Concord Farms, two miles away. Which attack occurred initially is still unclear to officials. Zhao is believed to have worked for one of the businesses.
Horrific Killings
According to police, an eighth person was also shot and injured and has been airlifted to the hospital. It is not known which location was targeted first. The shootings took place at a trucking company and a mushroom farm on the outskirts of the city.
According to ABC7 News, all the victims were coworkers and the suspect was an employee at one of the mushroom farms where the shooting occurred. Dave Pine, the president of the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors, referred to him as a "disgruntled worker."
Zhao is a Half Moon Bay resident and is believed to have a spouse, according to Corpus. The motive behind the attack is still not known.
According to officials, there were kids around as some of the workers lived on-site with their families.
Zhao was arrested after being found in his car in the parking area of the Half Moon Bay police substation of the Sheriff's Office. The sheriff claimed that he was arrested without incident and that a weapon was found in his car.
Dramatic footage from ABC News captures Zhao's arrest at 4:40 p.m. in the Half Moon sheriff's office parking lot.
His maroon Lexus SUV had been seen leaving the scene before being spotted later at the sheriff's station. Zhao is thought to have acted alone and is working with law authorities. A semi-automatic handgun was also found in his car, which is believed to have been used in the attack.
Another Deadly Attack
The shooting comes less than 48 hours after Huu Can Tran, 72, shot and killed 11 people who were celebrating the Lunar New Year in Monterey Park, close to Los Angeles. "This kind of shooting is horrific," said San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus.
"It's a tragedy we hear about too often, but today it has hit home to Half Moon Bay."
"We're working with our district attorney's office to interview the suspect. He's believed to be a worker. We don't have the exact connection at the time - we are working to try and gather more information," she added.
According to ABC News, Zhao, who is reportedly married, got into a fight with a few of his coworkers.
Although they have not yet verified whether he owned the weapon legally, Corpus stated that they believe the gun found in his SUV was the one used in the shooting. She was unable to verify whether he had a criminal record.
According to Corpus, children were at the scene since school had finished. "For them to witness this is unthinkable," she said.
At 5:00 p.m., the sheriff's office said that the suspect was in their custody.
"There is no ongoing threat to the community at this time," they said in a tweet just before 5 pm.
Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, tweeted: "At the hospital meeting with victims of a mass shooting when I get pulled away to be briefed about another shooting. This time in Half Moon Bay. Tragedy upon tragedy."
The Peninsula in the Bay Area is home to the 12,000-person little town of Half Moon Bay. The distance from San Francisco to the city is only about 30 miles.
