The suspect in the back-to-back mass shootings at two mushroom farms in Half Moon Bay, California, has admitted to the killings and blamed the incidents on years of bullying at both places of employment.
The confession was delivered by Chunli Zhao, 66, during a 15-minute jailhouse interview with Janelle Wang of NBC Bay Area on Thursday. On seven counts of murder and one count of attempted murder, both with enhancements for the use of firearms, as well as a “special circumstance accusation of serial murder,” he is being held without bail.
Zhao explained to Wang in Mandarin that he had endured years of harassment from coworkers as well as being made to put in a lot of overtime.
He claims that when he complained to management, they disregarded him.
Zhao thinks he might have a mental disorder and wasn’t rational when he started shooting on Monday.
According to reports, he said he was sorry for the murders and asked to see a doctor.
Zhao’s first victims were shot while he was “very red and really angry,” according to Erlin Ortiz, who works at one of the farms alongside her sister Miriam. Then, as the sisters began to drive away, he suddenly became more serious.
He was grinning and laughing. When he turned to face us after getting on the forklift, he was making fun of the circumstance, Ortiz told CBS SF Bay Area.
Zhao informed Wang that he had lived in the United States for 11 years and had a green card.
In addition, he remembered having no trouble getting the murder weapon in 2021.
Workplace violence is being investigated as a result of the shootings. Authorities from the state have started looking into the farms’ labor practices.
Gov. Gavin Newsom heard that some of the workers were “dwelling in shipping containers” and earning $9 an hour, which is far less than California’s $15.50 minimum wage when he spoke to the relatives of the victims on Tuesday.
According to Newsom, “no healthcare, no assistance, no services, but [they’re] taking care of our health, delivering a service to us every single day.”
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