Orange County

Witnesses Describe What Happened in Moments Leading Up to Laguna Woods Church Shooting

"These "a-gong"s and "āmā"s in their 70s and 80s are just amazing, amazing people, to have that clear sense of mind to take this guy down," said Yorba Linda Councilwoman Peggy Huang.

NBC Universal, Inc.

The Taiwanese congregation at Geneva Presbyterian Church had gathered for a lunch celebrating a former pastor, when they spotted a man in his 60s acting strangely. Annette Arreola reports for Today in LA on May 16, 2022.

Residents of Laguna Woods are reeling after a celebratory lunch for a former pastor at Geneva Presbyterian Church turned tragic and frightening, when a gunman opened fire on a group of churchgoers Sunday afternoon.

One of those parishioners died. Another five were injured, four critically and one with minor injuries.

Those victims, who were 66, 75, 82, 86 and 92 years old, according to the OC Sheriff's Department, were transported to local hospitals with gunshot wounds.

But according to authorities, it was the heroism and bravery of other members of the Taiwanese congregation that helped prevent further massacre.

"We believe a group of churchgoers detained him, and hogtied his legs with an extension cord, and confiscated at least two weapons from him," said Orange County Undersheriff Jeff Hallock, during a Sunday evening press conference. "That group of churchgoers displayed what we believe is exceptional heroism and bravery in intervening to stop the suspect. They undoubtedly prevented additional injuries and fatalities."

Laguna Woods, CA – May 15: A counselor attends to a grieving woman, center, outside the Geneva Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods on Sunday, May 15, 2022 where one person died and four people were critically injured in a shooting. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)
NBC 7
LAGUNA WOODS, CALIFORNIA – MAY 15: Police investigate the scene of a shooting at the Geneva Presbyterian Church on May 15, 2022 in Laguna Woods, California. According to police, the shooting left one person dead, four critically wounded, and one with minor injuries. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Police officers guard after a shooting inside Geneva Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods, California, on May 15, 2022. – One person was dead and four people were “critically” injured in a shooting at a church near Los Angeles, law enforcement said Sunday, just one day after a gunman killed 10 people at a grocery store in New York state. (Photo by RINGO CHIU / AFP) (Photo by RINGO CHIU/AFP via Getty Images)
LAGUNA WOODS, CALIFORNIA – MAY 15: Police investigate the scene of a shooting at the Geneva Presbyterian Church on May 15, 2022 in Laguna Woods, California. According to police, the shooting left one person dead, four critically wounded, and one with minor injuries. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
NBCLA
Getty
ORANGE COUNTY, US – MAY 15: Police tape blocks off access to Geneva Presbyterian Church , after a shooting earlier in the day, in Laguna Woods, CA, USA., May 15, 2022. (Photo by Katie McTiernan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The congregation had gathered for a Sunday morning service, and they were heading into a lunch banquet to celebrate a former pastor, who is visiting from Taiwan.

Yorba Linda Councilwoman Peggy Huang grew up in the Geneva Presbyterian Church community, and though she was not in the church when the shooting occurred, she spoke to members of the congregation in the wake of the shooting. She shared what they told her with NBC4.

As members walked in, some of them spotted a man in his 60s, acting strange and carrying newspapers, Huang said. No one in the small, tight-knit congregation knew him.

Witnesses say he then began locking the doors, and moments later, the first shots were fired, Huang said.

Witnesses also told Huang that the pastor threw a chair at the gunman after he opened fire. The gunman then dropped his weapon.

That's when other parishioners tackled the shooter to the ground, hog-tied him and held him down until authorities arrived.

"It's just amazing," Huang said. "You know, we called our grandparents "a-gong" and "āmā," [the Taiwanese words for "grandpa" and "grandma"], and these "a-gong"s and "āmā"s in their 70s and 80s are just amazing, amazing people, to have that clear sense of mind to take this guy down," she said.

The five shooting victims are in critical condition at local hospitals as of Monday morning.

The Orange County Sheriff's Department is leading the investigation, alongside FBI agents who are in the area gathering information.

So far, two weapons have been recovered.

The motive for the shooting is still unknown.

Exit mobile version