By Canadian Press

9 killed in shooting near LA after Lunar New Year festival

Jan 22, 2023 | 3:42 AM

MONTEREY PARK, Calif. (AP) — Nine people were killed in a mass shooting late Saturday in a city east of Los Angeles following a Lunar New Year celebration that attracted thousands, police said.

Sgt. Bob Boese of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said early Sunday that the shooting occurred at a business on Garvey Ave in Monterey Park. The shooter is a male, Boese said.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

MONTEREY PARK, Calif. (AP) — Dozens of police officers responded to reports of a shooting that occurred after a large Lunar New Year celebration in a community east of Los Angeles late Saturday.

Officials provided no information about the shooting in Monterey Park, a city of about 60,000 people with a large Asian population that’s about 10 miles (16 kilometers) from downtown Los Angeles.

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Earlier in the day, thousands of people attended the annual festival.

Seung Won Choi, who owns the Clam House seafood barbecue restaurant across the street from where the shooting happened, told the Los Angles Times that three people rushed into his business and told him to lock the door.

The people also told Choi that there was a shooter with a machine gun who had multiple rounds of ammunition on him so he could reload. Choi said he believes the shooting took place at a dance club.

The newspaper reported that the shooting happened after 10 p.m.

Saturday was the start of the two-day festival, which is one of the largest Lunar New Year events in Southern California.

Andrew Dalton, The Associated Press