Update: Authorities claim the gunman who attacked a California church was a Chinese immigrant motivated by hate for Taiwanese people.
The Associated Press reports: “Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes said the motive of the shooting was a grievance between the shooter, identified as a Chinese immigrant, and the Taiwanese community.”
Todd Harmonson, Josh Cain
The Orange County Register
The man accused of shooting at least one handgun at parishioners inside a Laguna Woods church on Sunday — killing one and injuring five others — is David Wenwei Chou, a 68-year-old Las Vegas resident, a law enforcement official said on Monday, May 16.
Chou is in custody at the Orange County Intake Release Center on $1 million bail, jail records show. He is scheduled to appear in Central Jail Court to be arraigned on Tuesday, when he could offer his plea, although the date of that court appearance could change.
All of the injured are expected to survive, the official said. Four of them were struck by gunfire and, initially at least, in critical condition and are from 66 to 92 years old. The fifth victim did not suffer a physical injury.
The shooting occurred at around 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 15, at a post-service lunch for the Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church, which shares the space at Geneva Presbyterian in Laguna Woods. Chou is accused of pulling out a handgun during the lunch and shooting at parishioners, who were able to subdue him, taking away his two guns and hog-tying him with extension cords, authorities said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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