Officials say the shooter who murdered one person and injured five others at a California church was assaulted by a courageous retired pastor before being restrained by senior parishioners who hogtied his legs and wrestled away his two weapons.
The gunman, who has only been named as an Asian male in his 60s, opened fire during a luncheon honoring former longtime pastor Billy Chang at Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods.
Chang slammed a chair into the killer’s skull as he paused to reload, while others rushed to take his rifle. Officials stated they hogtied his legs with extension wires and held him down.
Orange County Undersheriff Jeff Hallock stated, that group of churchgoers displayed what we believe to be exceptional heroism and bravery in intervening to stop the suspect, and they undoubtedly prevented additional injuries and fatalities.
Officials said the lone deceased, known only as a male, perished inside the church.
The motivation for the attack has not been revealed. The gunman was not from the area, and it was unclear whether he had any links to the church, according to the undersheriff.
“At this time, we don’t know what the suspect’s motive was, if he had a specific target in mind, or if this is even a hate crime,” Hallock said.
Officials reported the five injured were four Asian males aged 66, 75, 82, and 92, as well as an 86-year-old Asian woman. With gunshot wounds, four of them were classified in serious condition.
One of those who contacted 911, Jerry Chen, said there were roughly 40 people in the church for the lunch welcoming back Chang, who had served the church for 20 years before returning to Taiwan two years ago. Chen stated that this was his first trip back to the United States.
After ten people were killed in a horrible race-hate incident in a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, on Saturday, it was at least the second mass shooting of the weekend.
