Another mass shooting in US, 1 killed, 5 hurt in California church attack
Laguna Woods (CA), May 16: One person was killed and four others were critically wounded in a shooting Sunday afternoon at a Presbyterian church in a suburban Southern California community where the majority of residents are seniors, officials said. A suspect was in custody.
The shooting was reported shortly before 1.30 pm at Geneva Presbyterian Church in the city of Laguna Woods, the Orange County Sheriff's Department said on Twitter.
A man died at the scene and a fifth injured person suffered minor injuries, officials said. All the victims were adults.
Deputies detained a suspect, an adult male, and recovered a weapon, officials said.
About 30 people witnessed the violence, said Carrie Braun, a sheriff's spokesperson. The majority of those inside the church are believed to be of Taiwanese descent, Braun said.
Investigators were looking at many factors, including whether the bloodshed could be a hate crime and whether the gunman was known to the church community, Braun said.
The gunfire erupted during a lunch reception honouring a former pastor of a Taiwanese congregation that has services at Geneva, according to a statement from the Presbytery of Los Ranchos, a church administrative body.
Please keep the leadership of the Taiwanese congregation and Geneva in your prayers as they care for the those traumatised by this shooting, the presbytery's Tom Cramer said in a statement on Facebook.
More details were expected from a sheriff's department news conference scheduled for 5 pm.
Federal agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were responding to the scene. The FBI was also sending agents to the scene to assist the sheriff.
Laguna Woods was built as a senior living community and later became a city. More than 80 per cent of residents in the city of 18,000 people about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles are at least 65.
Governor Gavin Newsom's office said on Twitter that he was closely monitoring the situation.
No one should have to fear going to their place of worship. Our thoughts are with the victims, community, and all those impacted by this tragic event," the tweet said.
The incident occurred in an area with a cluster of houses of worship, including Catholic, Lutheran, and Methodist churches and a Jewish synagogue.
On its website, Geneva Presbyterian Church describes its mission as to remember, tell, and live the way of Jesus by being just, kind, and humble.
All are welcome here. Really, we mean that! Geneva aspires to be an inclusive congregation worshipping, learning, connecting, giving and serving together.
The shooting came a day after an 18-year-old man shot and killed 10 people at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York.
This is upsetting and disturbing news, especially less than a day after a mass shooting in Buffalo, said US Rep Katie Porter, whose district includes Laguna Woods. This should not be our new normal. I will work hard to support the victims and their families.
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LPG shortage in country; 1 crore people to be unemployed: Kejriwal
New Delhi (PTI): AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday slammed the Centre for 'heavy LPG shortage' affecting people across the country and questioned the prime minister's "support" for Israel and the US.
The former Delhi chief minister said, "There is a chance that almost 1 crore people would be unemployed because of the power shortage situation emerging," he said.
"There is a heavy shortage of LPG in the country. The reason behind this is that 90 per cent of the LPG imported in India is from the Strait of Hormuz. Restaurants and hotels are facing shortages. In the next two days, 50 per cent of hotels are on the verge of shutdown, news is coming from Delhi NCR, Bihar," Kejriwal said.
Kejriwal accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "demolishing" India's non-aligned foreign policy of several decades and making Iran our "enemy".
"PM Modi has made a mistake by demolishing India's non-aligned policy of 75 years. We should not have aligned with anyone. He stood by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a day before the war began. We have made Iran our enemy," Kejriwal said.
Even during the Cold War times, India was following the non-aligned foreign policy, the AAP leader said.
