May 17, 2022

USA: A 68yo Chinese Communist Nationalist Drove From Las Vegas On Saturday Night To Shoot Up A Taiwanese Church In Laguna On Sunday Morning Murder 1, Injured 5. Ruled A Political Hate Crime.

NBCLA published May 16, 2022: "Hero" Doctor Killed in Church Shooting Charged Gunman, Sheriff Says. The Orange County sheriff describes the heroic actions of the man killed in the OC church shooting -- 52-year-old Dr. John Cheng, who saved many lives when he charged at the shooter.

KTLA 5 published May 16, 2022: O.C. shooting suspect motivated by political tensions, officials say. Chris Wolfe reports for the KTLA 5 News.

ABC7 published May 16, 2022: Exclusive chilling photos show moment Laguna Woods church gunman was subdued by heroic congregants. Exclusive images obtained by ABC7 shows the moment David Chou was subdued by heroic congregants inside the Geneva Presbyterian Church on El Toro Road in Laguna Woods.
CBS Los Angeles published May 16, 2022: Witness offers firsthand account of fatal shooting at Laguna Woods church. As the Laguna Woods community continues to react following Sunday's fatal shooting at Geneva Presbyterian Church, witnesses have begun to detail the tragic moments that left one man dead and five others wounded. Jeff Nguyen spoke firsthand with one of those witnesses, who was amongst the many heroes who put their lives on the line to prevent further carnage.
NBC News
written by Antonio Planas, Andrew Blankstein, Jonathan Dienst and Dennis Romero
Monday May 16, 2022

A Las Vegas man suspected in Sunday’s shooting that left one person dead and five others injured at a meeting of Asian churchgoers in Southern California was motivated by political tensions between China and Taiwan, authorities said Monday.

David Chou, 68, has been booked into jail on recommended charges of one count of murder and five counts of attempted murder, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.

Kristi Johnson, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles office, said at a news conference Monday afternoon that a federal hate crimes investigation had been opened against Chou to determine whether additional charges can be brought.

Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes said the briefing that the was shooting “a politically motived hate incident." Barnes said Chou, an U.S. citizen from China, "was upset about political tensions between China and Taiwan."

Chou traveled to Southern California on Saturday before the attack Sunday on the church, where he is accused of securing doors with chains and using glue to disable locks. No connection has been established between Chou and the church or any of its parishioners, Barnes said.

The victim killed in the attack, Dr. John Cheng, 53, of Laguna Niguel, charged the gunman and tried to disarm him, which led to his being fatally shot, Barnes said.

Cheng was a married father of two who was well respected in the field of sports medicine, Barnes said.

"Dr. Cheng is a hero," he said. "It is known that Dr. Cheng charged the individual, the suspect, attempted to disarm him, which allowed other parishioners to then intercede, taking the suspect into custody."

The shooting targeted members of Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church, Barnes said, which shared a space with Geneva Presbyterian Church.

Congregants were celebrating the return of a pastor from a mission to Taiwan, Barnes said.

Barnes added that other congregants, who were elderly, also risked their lives and confronted the gunman, including a pastor who threw a chair at him.

"They acted spontaneously, heroically, and if not for their quick action, the way that this individual set up that environment, to kill many more people, there would have been many, many more lives lost," Barnes said.

Investigators found several bags of ammunition in the church, as well as four Molotov cocktail-type incendiary devices, Barnes said.

Chou has lived in Texas and worked security jobs in Las Vegas, Barnes said. Search warrants have been served at his residence in Nevada and at a vehicle in the church's parking lot, he said.

After Cheng charged him, the gunman was detained by members of the church, who hogtied him with electrical extension cords, the sheriff’s department said.

Stephen Galloway, an assistant special agent in charge with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said two 9 mm semi-automatic pistols were found. Chou bought the guns in Las Vegas in 2015 and 2017.

Investigators said there is no evidence, at this point, that the gunman was working with others. Barnes said Chou had a personal grievance with the Taiwanese community.

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