TeaThat America has been rocked by the deadliest mass shooting Since the May 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, 21 young children and teachers were killed.
Eleven people were killed and nine others were injured after a gunman opened fire inside Star Ballroom dance studio in monterey park, CaliforniaSaturday night, immediately after thousands of members of Asian American The community gathered outside for the Lunar New Year celebration in the city angel,
Ten of the victims – five men and five women – were pronounced dead on Saturday, while the eleventh victim succumbed to his injuries on Monday.
The suspected gunman, Huu Can Tran, 72, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on Sunday when police approached him in his white van, according to officials.
The motive for the attack is unknown and it is unclear whether Tran knew the victims, although he was a regular at the dance hall.
Now, details are emerging about the suspect and those who lost their lives. The grieving families of the victims have started speaking out and remembering their loved ones. Here’s what we know so far about the victims:
Who are the victims of the firing?
Authorities have now identified all 11 victims of the shooting. They were all in their 50s, 60s and 70s.
Of the 10 victims who were pronounced dead immediately, five were men and five were women. The eleventh victim who died at the hospital was also a woman.
On Monday, four victims were identified by the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office, while the names of three others among those killed were revealed by people who knew them.
Mamie Nhan, a 65-year-old woman, Valentino Alvaro, a 68-year-old man, Lillian Lee, a 63-year-old woman, and Xiuzhan Yu, a 57-year-old woman, were among the deaths confirmed by authorities.
Ming Wei Ma, the male owner of the dance studio, was pronounced dead by friends and relatives, and the death of 62-year-old Nancy Liu was confirmed by family. cbs news report,
Diana Tom, 70, was wounded during the shooting and later died of her injuries at a regional hospital.
The remaining victims were named on Tuesday. Los Angeles Times reports,
Hong Jian, a 62-year-old woman; Muoi Ung, a 68-year-old woman; Yu Cao, a 72-year-old man; and Chia Yau, a 77-year-old man, all died at the scene.
The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles confirmed that two of the victims were Taiwanese Americans, and the Chinese consulate in the city said that one of the dead was a civilian. Mr. Alvero was Filipino-American, according to the Philippine Consulate.
Family and friends pay tribute
Family members of Nahan said they were comforted to know she enjoyed her “last dance” and died doing what she loved.
This photo provided by niece Fonda Quan shows Mamie Nhan
(AP)
His niece Fonda Quan told the AP, “It is comforting to know that he enjoyed his last dance, even though it was his last dance.”
Ms Kwan said the 65-year-old has been a regular at both Star Ballroom and Lai Lai Ballroom for the past decade and had specifically chosen her usual haunt to “start the year fresh” with the Lunar New Year celebrations .
Her mother passed away three weeks ago and she was looking forward to starting afresh, her niece said.
Instead, she was shot in her car as she was leaving the club.
family also released shocking statement On Monday: “She spent so many years going to the dance studio in Monterey Park on the weekends. This is what she loved to do. But err, Saturday was her last dance. We are starting the Broken Lunar New Year. We never thought that his life would end so suddenly. Mamie was 65 years old. If you knew her, you knew that her warm smile and kindness were in sync. She was a loving aunt, sister, daughter and friend. Mamie was our biggest cheerleader.”
The first victim, informally identified by friends and relatives, was the owner of the ballroom studio, who heroically ran toward the gunman to try to stop the carnage.
Ming Wei Ma is the owner of Star Dance Studio and worked there as a dance instructor for many years.
his friends told CBS Los Angeles He was the first to run towards the gunman when he opened fire inside the club.
Eric Chen said, “According to the chat, he was the first to fend off the shooter,” adding that this was typical of Ma’s selfless nature.
Ming Wei Ma was identified among the victims of the shooting as friends
(KCAL News)
“He was just a caring, and second first, people first kind of person.”
Mr Chen said it was “heartbreaking and it is unimaginable that this would happen”.
It is unclear whether any of the victims were targeted and whether the suspect knew them prior to the attack.
Those hospitalized were in stable to serious condition.
Diana Tom’s family described her as a “hard working mother, wife and grandmother who loved to dance”.
“On behalf of Diana Tom, we, her family, condemn this senseless act of violence that has uprooted the lives of all the victims, their families and the entire API community,” the family said in a statement. “We respect and support all those affected.”
“On the night of January 21, Diana was celebrating the Lunar New Year by dancing with her friends at Star Dance,” the statement said. “To those who knew her, she was someone who always went out of her way to give to others.”
Valentino Alvaro was described as: “a loving father, a devoted son and brother, a grandfather who dearly loved his three granddaughters, an uncle who loved his nieces and nephews as his own.”
“He loved people and listened to their lives and in return shared his own stories with such enthusiasm that you couldn’t help but listen and laugh,” the family said in a statement. Life of the party” and a devout Catholic.
The family said, “We hope he danced to his heart’s content till the end and hope he is now dancing in heaven.”
Xiuzhan Yu’s niece Kathleen Fong spoke up for the family, set up a fundraising pageTo which she wrote: “After days of waiting in uncertainty, anxiety and worry, we received news that my aunt was indeed among the dead at the event.”
Miss Yu came to America from China with her husband and three children a decade ago. Two of the children are currently studying sports medicine and kinesiology at state universities.
Ms. Fong wrote, “My aunt and uncle have worked tirelessly to support their daughters’ livelihood and education, taking odd jobs and labor-intensive businesses to make a living.” “With the support of both parents the family has survived, but with neither of them in the picture and the huge cost of unexpected funeral services awaiting them, we felt it necessary to reach out to the community for support.”
While paying tribute to the family members, he has also prayed for the other victims of the shootout.
what do we know about the shooting
On Saturday night, about seven miles east of downtown Los Angeles, visitors gathered to celebrate the Lunar New Year. According to the paper, the two-day festival attracts thousands of people, making it the largest of its kind in the region.
Around 10.22 pm, a person entered the dance club and started firing.
Seung Won Choi, owner of a seafood restaurant across the street from the ballroom, told LA Times Attendees of that party fled the building and ran into their businesses, warning them to lock and lock their doors.
Police reached the spot and found that the party-goers were already struggling to escape from the building.
He told reporters on Sunday, “When officers arrived at the scene, they saw several individuals, patrons … running out of the venue and screaming.” “Officers entered the location and found additional victims.”
Ten people were killed in the attack and another 10 were taken to hospital with various injuries.
Huu Can Tran’s photo on surveillance footage after the attack
(Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department)
Police said that, about 20 minutes later, a gunman entered another dance studio – Lai Lai Ballroom and Studio – in the nearby Alhambra.
There, a group of heroic protestors managed to wrestle the gun from the shooter, who then fled the scene. No one was injured in the second incident.
A massive manhunt was launched to find the gunman in the worst mass shooting in the US since the massacre at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, that killed 21 young students and teachers.
On Sunday, investigators tracked down Tran after witnesses to the Alhambra incident saw a white cargo van at the scene and surveillance footage of the suspect was released to the public.
About 12 hours after the mass shooting, officers spotted him driving a van around Torrance, about 30 miles from Monterey Park.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said at a press conference on Sunday that Tran had driven into a parking lot when police stopped the van.
“When the officers got out of their patrol vehicle to contact the man, they heard a gunshot from inside the van,” the sheriff said.
Two police cars can be seen near a building in Monterey Park where the shooting took place
(Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
He said that before approaching the van, SWAT teams surrounded the vehicle and found Tran dead inside, having shot himself.
Evidence found inside the vehicle reportedly links the 72-year-old to the shooting.
Authorities believe Tran acted alone and are not looking for anyone else in connection with the mass shooting.
The motive of the attack is not clear.
Tran had been a regular on the Star Dance studio for years and had previously complained about instructors making “nasty” comments about her, people who knew her told CNN. Sources told CNN that he also met his ex-wife at the club.
It is unclear whether Tran was still attending the dance studio in the aftermath of the mass shooting or if he knew any of the victims.
On Monday, it emerged that Tran was paranoid that his family tried to poison him decades ago and went to police with charges just weeks before he killed 11 people in a shooting at a ballroom dance club.
Hemet police revealed that Tran had visited the police department twice in early January – once on January 7 and again on January 9 – for “past fraud, theft, and money laundering 10 to 20 years ago involving his family in the Los Angeles area.” Alleging the poisoning charges associated with”.
The gunman told the police that he would return with documents to prove his allegations but he never did.