Who is Half Moon Bay shooting suspect Chunli Zhao?

CHAOS broke out at two mushroom farms in Northern California in January 2023 after a gunman opened fire.

The shootings, which took place at Mountain Mushroom Farm and Concord Farms, claimed the lives of seven people and left another in critical condition.

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Who is Half Moon Bay shooting suspect Chunli Zhao?

Chunli Zhao is a 66-year-old Half Moon Bay resident accused of killing seven people in consecutive shootings.

Records show he was charged with murder and one attempted murder, according to the Associated Press.

Police believe Zhao drove to a mushroom farm in Half Moon Bay, California, and opened fire, killing four and injuring another.

He then allegedly drove to another nearby farm where he previously worked and killed another three people, Eamonn Allen said, a sheriff’s spokesman said.

Zhao worked as a forklift driver at Mountain Mushroom Farm for several years and, according to ABC7, had “a lot of anger towards his colleagues.”

At this point, details of Zhao’s personal life are unclear, but Allen said, “There were no specific signs that would have led us to believe he was capable of anything like this.”

However, court records show that Zhao was previously accused by a roommate of trying to suffocate him with a pillow. He also threatened to split his head open with a knife, according to the New York Times.

As a result, the roommate, identified as Yingjiu Wang, applied for a restraining order, which was later granted but is no longer in effect.

According to reports, Wang and Zhao worked at the same restaurant.

The Half Moon Bay shooting came just days after a 72-year-old gunman opened fire, killing ten people, during a New Year’s celebration at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park, California.

Zhao is expected in court at a later date.

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Who are the victims of the Half Moon Bay shooting?

The victims of the Half Moon Bay shooting included six men and two women, all of whom were Asian or Hispanic, according to Reuters.

Currently, authorities are still working to identify them, but Jose and Pedro Romero have been identified as two of them by their cousin.

Jose died while Prdro was wounded and is now hospitalized.

“You try to improve your life and then you end up with it,” her cousin Jose Juarez told Reuters.

According to Reuters, Carlos Martinez-Maya also identified his uncle Marciano Martinez-Jimenez as one of the Concord Farms victims.

More information on the identities of the victims is expected to be released in the coming days.