1 lifeless, 4 injured in California church capturing

One particular person was killed and 4 others have been critically wounded in a capturing Sunday afternoon at a Presbyterian church in a suburban Southern California neighborhood the place the vast majority of residents are seniors, officers mentioned. A suspect was in custody.

The capturing was reported shortly earlier than 1:30 p.m. at Geneva Presbyterian Church within the metropolis of Laguna Woods, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department mentioned on Twitter.

A person died on the scene and a fifth injured particular person suffered minor accidents, officers mentioned. All the victims have been adults.

Deputies detained a suspect, an grownup male, and recovered a weapon, officers mentioned.

About 30 individuals witnessed the violence, mentioned Carrie Braun, a sheriff’s spokesperson. The majority of these contained in the church are believed to be of Taiwanese descent, Braun mentioned.

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Investigators have been many elements, together with whether or not the bloodshed may very well be a hate crime and whether or not the gunman was identified to the church neighborhood, Braun mentioned.

The gunfire erupted throughout a lunch reception honoring a former pastor of a Taiwanese congregation that has companies at Geneva, based on a press release from the Presbytery of Los Ranchos, a church administrative physique.

“Please keep the leadership of the Taiwanese congregation and Geneva in your prayers as they care for the those traumatized by this shooting,” the presbytery’s Tom Cramer mentioned in a press release on Facebook.

More particulars have been anticipated from a sheriff’s division information convention scheduled for five p.m.

Federal brokers from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have been responding to the scene. The FBI was additionally sending brokers to the scene to help the sheriff.

Laguna Woods was constructed as a senior dwelling neighborhood and later turned a metropolis. More than 80% of residents within the metropolis of 18,000 individuals about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles are no less than 65.

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Gov. Gavin Newsom’s workplace mentioned on Twitter that he was carefully monitoring the state of affairs.

“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 mentioned.

The incident occurred in an space with a cluster of homes of worship, together with Catholic, Lutheran and Methodist church buildings and a Jewish synagogue.

On its web site, 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 capturing got here a day after an 18-year-old man shot and killed 10 individuals at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York.

“This is upsetting and disturbing news, especially less than a day after a mass shooting in Buffalo,” mentioned U.S. Rep Katie Porter, whose district contains Laguna Woods. “This should not be our new normal. I will work hard to support the victims and their families.”

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