Ten people were killed and “at least” ten others were wounded outside Los Angeles when an unidentified gunman opened fire as revelers celebrated the Lunar New Year Saturday night, according to police.
The shooting occurred at a ballroom dance studio in Monterey Park at 10:22 p.m., police said.
The city of 61,000 is home to a predominantly Asian-American population and is home to a large number of Asian markets and restaurants, and was hosting the first night of its annual Lunar New Year Celebration when the mass shooting occurred.
A lone gunman had fled the scene, and it was unclear if his ghastly attack was targeted, or motivated by hate, officials said at a press conference Sunday.
“When officers arrived on scene they observed numerous individuals, patrons of the location, pouring out of the location, screaming,” Capt. Andrew Meyer of the La County Sheriff’s Dept said. “The officers made entry to the location and located additional victims.”
First responders found ten victims fatally shot at the ballroom dance studio on West Garvey Avenue.
“There are at least ten additional victims that were transported to numerous local hospitals and are listed in various conditions from stable to critical,” Meyer said.
Police were investigating if the catastrophe was connected to another violent incident in the nearby suburb of Alhambra, according to Meyer.
Monterey Park is located in the San Gabriel Valley, roughly 8 miles away from downtown Los Angeles.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Seung Won Choi, who owns a restaurant across the street from where the shooting happened, said three people rushed into his business and told him to lock the door, claiming the shooter had a “machine gun with multiple rounds of ammunition.”
Police confirmed the Lunar Festival would be canceled in wake of the deadly attack.
“Out of an abundance of caution and reverence for the victims, we are canceling the event,” Monterey Park Police Chief Scott Wiese said.
The festival draws more than 100,000 visitors each day including food vendors, entertainers, and merchants throughout the two-day celebration.
The Lunar New Year festival began Saturday morning and ended around 9 p.m. local time, more than an hour before the massacre.
“Our hearts go out to those who lost loved ones tonight in our neighboring city, Monterey Park, where a mass shooting just occurred,” tweeted Los Angeles City Controller Kenneth Mejia, the first Asian American to hold citywide office in the city.
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