Authorities said that at least seven people were killed in two connected shootings in California on Monday, just days after a different mass shooting there claimed the lives of 11 people.
A few hours later, one person was killed and seven people were hurt in an unconnected shooting in Oakland, California.
According to Christina Corpus, sheriff of San Mateo County, the first two shootings on Monday happened in two agricultural nurseries close to Half Moon Bay, a seaside community south of San Francisco.
A suspect was in arrest, according to officials, and the neighborhood was not still under threat.
According to a law enforcement person with knowledge of the case, the shootings were a targeted attack in which the shooter meant to murder particular victims.
Sheriff Corpus reported that four individuals were discovered dead along the Cabrillo Highway on Monday afternoon. A second person was sent to Stanford Medical Center with critical injuries. Soon after, she added, three additional victims were discovered dead in a different nursery about a mile distant.
Zhao Chunli, a suspect who is 67 years old and a resident of Half Moon Bay, was apprehended Monday night after being discovered in his vehicle in the parking lot of a police station there, according to the authorities. He was taken into custody without a hitch, and his car had a semiautomatic rifle that investigators suspect was used in the shootings.
Sheriff Corpus said, “We have the lone weapon that we think to be involved.”
The motivation for the shooting is now unknown, according to the officials, who added that the suspect, a farmworker, is thought to have acted alone. Sheriff Corpus reported that he is aiding the inquiry.
Sheriff Corpus described the shooting location as a large, rural area that is dispersed, where people work and reside in the same location.
When children were out of school in the afternoon, she recalled, “it was indescribable for them to observe.”
The victims’ identities are still being sought by officials.
The homeland security adviser briefed President Biden on the Half Moon Bay shooting, according to a tweet from Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary. She stated in a tweet that “he has asked federal law enforcement to provide any necessary assistance to the local police.” “The President will be updated when new information becomes available.”
At a petrol station in Oakland, which is 45 miles northeast of Half Moon Bay, there was another shooting on Monday night. According to the police, one person died in the event, while seven people who were shot are in stable condition. In relation to the incident, no one has been taken into custody.
The shootings on Monday follow a different mass shooting that occurred over the weekend in California. A 72-year-old man attacked those celebrating the Lunar New Year in a dancing ballroom in Monterey Park, California. Eleven people have killed, and the shooter committed suicide. There were nine more injuries.
Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom said he was meeting with victims of the Monterey Park shooting spree when he was informed of the shooting in Half Moon Bay on Monday.
He posted on Twitter with the phrase “Tragedy following tragedy.”
President Biden asked Congress to support new legislation restricting the sale of assault weapons and called for more aggressive action against gun violence.
“Jill and I are sending our prayers to the victims and victims’ families of the most recent horrible incident in Half Moon Bay, California. Communities in California are mourning the loss of loved ones due to a senseless act of gun violence for the second time in recent days, he said in a statement.
