SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — The person accused of opening fireplace on a Southern California church congregation as a result of his political hatred for Taiwan dubbed himself a “destroying angel” in a seven-volume diary despatched to a newspaper earlier than the assault, the paper mentioned Wednesday.
David Chou, 68, spent $16.10 to mail seven thick photocopied volumes of handwritten Chinese language textual content and a flash force to the Global Magazine workplace within the Los Angeles suburb of Monterey Park, in keeping with pictures revealed within the Chinese language-language paper.
The pages bore the name: “Diary of an Angel Destroying Independence” in an obvious connection with Taiwan’s self-government. The Chinese language Communist Birthday party continues to call for Taiwan reunify with China.
The diary pages have been gained Monday, someday after Chou allegedly opened fireplace at a lunch amassing of aged parishioners at Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in the neighborhood of Laguna Woods.
The newspaper didn’t document the contents of the diaries and no person there it appears learn thru them earlier than sending them to the police throughout the paper’s lawyer, mentioned an worker who declined to be named as a result of they weren’t licensed to talk overtly.
Investigators have been conscious about the studies that the journals have been despatched to the newspaper, in keeping with Orange County sheriff’s spokesperson Carrie Braun. She didn’t know if the sheriff’s division or FBI had taken ownership of them as of Wednesday afternoon.
Chou may face existence in jail or the demise penalty if convicted of homicide and tried homicide. He has no longer but entered a plea and remained jailed with out bail in Orange County pending a June 10 arraignment.
County District Lawyer Todd Spitzer has mentioned Chou was once motivated through hatred for Taiwan, the place he was once born after his circle of relatives was once compelled from mainland China when Communists prevailed in a civil conflict that led to 1949. He it appears selected the church at random and didn’t know any person there earlier than he drove to California from Las Vegas on Saturday, government mentioned.
Government have mentioned Chou sat thru a church carrier earlier than attending the luncheon in honor of a former pastor, the place he mingled with the parishioners for approximately 40 mins earlier than chaining and nailing close go out doorways and opening fireplace.
When the gunfire erupted, Dr. John Cheng, 52, charged Chou and was once shot however government mentioned he disrupted the assault and can have stored dozens of lives.
The previous pastor, Billy Chang, then picked up a chair and threw it at Chou, who fell at the ground. Chang mentioned he rushed at Chou and a number of other congregation contributors held Chou down and tied him up.
Chou was once armed with two legally bought 9 mm handguns and hid luggage conserving ammunition and 4 Molotov cocktail-style gadgets within the church corridor the place the luncheon was once being held, government mentioned.
The wounded ranged in age from 66 to 92 and have been anticipated to live on.
The taking pictures shook Southern California’s Taiwanese neighborhood.
“I’m beginning to fear about our other folks,” Dr. Simon Lin, a pacesetter on the Taiwan Middle Basis of Los Angeles, mentioned at a information convention. “The Taiwan Middle may be very pleasant. It’s open to the general public. We by no means test your background.”
The small neighborhood heart lacks the finances to rent full-time safety, he added.
Louis M. Huang, director basic of the Taipei Financial and Cultural Place of job in Los Angeles, mentioned he has self belief in U.S. regulation enforcement to hold out the investigation and that justice can be served.
He known as on Taiwanese American citizens to appreciate variations in opinion however mentioned no person has a proper to infringe on other folks’s rights or to take any individual’s existence.
He suggested neighborhood contributors to report back to the police in the event that they see one thing that issues them.
“Don’t stay silent,” he mentioned.
Related Press reporters John Antczak in Los Angeles and Ken Ritter in Las Vegas contributed to this document.
