Police said on Monday that the man who opened fire on a California church on Sunday, leaving one dead and five injured, is a Chinese-American and has a hatred for Taiwanese society.
The five victims of the shooting, which was found at the Laguna Woods church after lunch and religious service, were from Taiwan.
While reloading his gun, the attacker, who was under the influence of priests and worshipers, was determined by the police to be 68-year-old David Chou.
According to Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes, he is a citizen of Chinese descent who has resided in the United States for “many years” and worked as a security guard in the Las Vegas area.
Sharif said at a press conference that the sixty-year-old boy who prepared the attack and was equipped with spare magazines and Molotov cocktails was motivated by “political and hatred”.
Referring to “notes” found in the suspect’s car by investigators, Barnes spoke of “complaints the individual has against the Taiwanese community as a whole.” To date, there is no indication that he had any particular ties to the church or that he was targeting any particular person.
“From what we’ve found, we believe their specific target is the Taiwanese community, and this Taiwanese Presbyterian church is a representation of that community,” Sheriff said.
The man killed by the suspect was the 52-year-old doctor, John Cheng, who died after attacking to disarm the attacker, giving the others time to immobilize him by tying him up with an electrical extension cord.
In this sense, Barnes, Dr. Chen is the “hero”, without him “there would undoubtedly be other victims”.
The bail of the suspect, who was taken into custody, was set at $1 million.
Political and diplomatic tensions are high between Beijing and Taipei: the communist regime views the island of Taiwan as a rebellious province that must return to its control, if necessary, by force.
source: Noticias
