Georgia Man Accused of Fatally Shooting 8 People, Including 6 Asian Women, in Spa Shooting Spree

A Woodstock, Georgia, man is suspected of embarking on arguably one of the most horrific shooting sprees America has seen in recent years. Robert Aaron Long, 21, is accused of fatally shooting eight peopleโ€”six of whom were Asian womenโ€”after firing shots at two Atlanta massage parlors and a third in Acworth, Ga. Long was captured…

A Woodstock, Georgia, man is suspected of embarking on arguably one of the most horrific shooting sprees America has seen in recent years. Robert Aaron Long, 21, is accused of fatally shooting eight peopleโ€”six of whom were Asian womenโ€”after firing shots at two Atlanta massage parlors and a third in Acworth, Ga. Long was captured in Crisp County and was taken into custody after leading police officers on a car chase.

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The Associated Press reports that around 5 p.m. Tuesday evening, Long allegedly opened fire at Youngโ€™s Asian Massage Parlor, which is located in a strip mall in Acworth. Five people were shot. Two of them died at the scene and two more died after being taken to the hospital. The fifth victim survived but there has been no update on his condition. Nearly an hour after that shooting began, a similar shooting left three more dead at Gold Spa in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. Police on the sceneโ€”who had responded to a call about a suspected robberyโ€”got another call about shots being fired at Aromatherapy Spa, which is reportedly across the street from Gold Spa. At the third spa, police found one woman dead on the ground inside. None of the victimsโ€™ names have been released.

Capt. Jay Baker of the Cherokee Sheriffโ€™s Office told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that โ€œIt does appear that itโ€™s the same suspect,โ€ and he confirmed that surveillance footage appears to show that Long was responsible for all three shootings.

Atlanta police spokesman Sgt. John Chafee agreed with Bakerโ€™s assessment telling AJC that โ€œit is extremely likely our suspect is the same as Cherokee Countyโ€™sโ€ based on video evidence.

Because the nation has seen a sharp increase in attacks on Asian-Americans amid the coronavirus pandemicโ€”for which many misguided Americans have blamed the Chinese because of racism and, frankly, the irresponsible rhetoric of our former presidentโ€”many are speculating that these killings were hate crimes carried out by a white supremacist emboldened by anti-Asian sentiment.

โ€œThese murders occurred at a time when anti-Asian violence has been spiking,โ€ U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) tweeted Tuesday. โ€œAll officials should do their part to condemn violence and not inflame further discrimination.โ€

https://twitter.com/tedlieu/status/1372018869879988225?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Still, the Cherokee County Sheriffโ€™s Office told WSB-TV 2 that Long has not indicated that the shootings were racially motivated and has only said that he targeted businesses that he had been to before.

In fact, Baker said during a news conference Wednesday that โ€œthe suspect did take responsibility for the shootings,โ€ but that โ€œhe claims...that it was not racially motivated,โ€ and that โ€œhe apparently has an issue with sex addiction,โ€ and sees these locations as places he can go to and โ€œeliminateโ€ his โ€œtemptation.โ€

https://twitter.com/therecount/status/1372201444837822466?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms was careful not to jump to any conclusions while commending law enforcement for their swift action in apprehending the suspect and condemning the violence perpetrated by the shooter.

โ€œA motive is still not clear, but a crime against any community is a crime against us all,โ€ Bottoms said in a statement, AJC reports. โ€œI have remained in close contact with the White House and APD as they work with federal, state and local partners to investigate the suspect who is responsible for this senseless violence in our city.โ€

Speaking of the White House, officials told WSB-TV that President Joe Biden has been briefed on the โ€œhorrificโ€ shootings and that White House officials โ€œhave been in touch with the Mayorโ€™s office and will remain in touch with the FBI.โ€

Hereโ€™s how Longโ€™s arrest went down as reported by WSB-TV:

The Crisp County Sheriffโ€™s Office said it received information on the suspectโ€™s car and spotted it on Ga. 401/I75 Tuesday evening. The Georgia State Patrol was able to perform a PIT maneuver on the car. Long was arrested without incident and taken to the Crisp County Detention Facility.

Long was extradited back to Cherokee County Wednesday morning. He is expected to be in court Wednesday morning for a first appearance.

While thereโ€™s no official word on whether or not the victims were targeted by their race, the New York Police Departmentโ€™s counterterrorism unit said it is โ€œmonitoring the shooting of Asian Americans in Georgia,โ€ and that it โ€œwill be deploying assets to our great Asian communities across the city out of an abundance of caution.โ€

Straight From The Root

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