UPDATE: Sunday, Jan 22, 2023 · 7:15:58 PM +00:00 · OK Dodo
A white van has been surrounded by SWAT / LASD just south of the Del Amo Fashion Centre in Torrance. The van is the van of interest, given that it is suspected to be the ride of the mass murderer.
A standoff is occurring. The driver of the van is said to match the description of the person of interest, although it’s not made official whether the driver is connected to the mass shooting.
UPDATE: Sunday, Jan 22, 2023 · 1:31:55 PM +00:00 · OK Dodo
Authorities are trying to determine whether the gunman has also went to Lai Lai Ballroom in nearby Alhambra. No injuries have been reported there.
"We are aware of an incident that occurred in Alhambra and we have investigators on scene trying to determine if there is a connection," said Capt. Andrew Meyer of LASD during a press conference Sunday morning.
"The investigators are working every lead on this case. We are reviewing all surveillance video and following all leads. We are not going to leave anything unturned," Meyer added.
At around the 10pm hour on Saturday, a gunman went inside the Star Dance Studio in Monterey Park, California, a suburb of Los Angeles, and opened fire with a semiautomatic rifle. The shooting occurred very close to where the city’s Lunar New Year celebration is held.
Seung Won Choi, who owns a seafood barbecue restaurant on Garvey Avenue across from where the shooting happened, said three people rushed into his restaurant and told him to lock the door.
They said there was a man with a semiautomatic gun in the area. The shooter, they said, had multiple rounds of ammunition on him, so that once his ammunition ran out he reloaded, Choi said.
Wong Wei, who lives nearby, said his friend had gone to the dance club that night with a few of her friends. His friend was in the bathroom when the shooting started.
When she came out, he said, she saw a gunman and three bodies — two women and one person who was the boss of the club, Wei said. He said his friend escaped to his home around 11 p.m.
The shooter was carrying a long gun and appeared to fire indiscriminately, his friends told him.
“They don’t know why, so they run,” he said.
10 people were pronounced dead at the scene. 10 others were taken to hospital, in conditions varying from stable to critical. It is a very shaking moment for those living in this relatively safe suburb where about half of residents are of Chinese descent. Monterey Park’s Lunar New Year festival, which draws as many as 100,000 visitors, is supposed to be a joyous time for everyone. Authorities have yet to officially determine the motive behind the mass shooting, although some have speculated that this is yet another hate crime. (Note that some of the screenshots below may or may not be directly related to the act of terror that recently occurred; they do highlight how pervasive right-wing extremism is in society.)