Atlanta Massage Parlor Shootings: Here’s what we know

At least 8 people were killed in shootings at a massage parlor in Atlanta, on Tuesday.

A suspect, Robert Aaron Long, was arrested by the police on Tuesday night after the police said they believed the suspect was involved in the three shootings based on video evidence. The suspect was arrested 150 miles south of Atlanta.

The first round of shootings happened a few minutes before 5 p.m. on Tuesday at Young’s Asian Massage, about 30 miles northwest of downtown Atlanta. Four people died at the scene of the shooting, while the other two died at the hospital, after the first shooting, according to Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office. One person was left wounded.

Following reports of the shooting at the Asian massage parlor, the authorities and police responded immediately and converged at the scene.

An hour later, a similar shooting occurred at the Gold Massage Spa on Piedmont Road in Atlanta. Three people were found dead. One person was later found dead at the Aroma Therapy Spa, just across the street, Police Chief Rodney Byrant said.

Federal agents on Wednesday began investigating the three shootings that happened at the massage parlors.

After a brief manhunt of the suspect, Long, 21 was arrested, as investigators worked to confirm that all three shootings were related, Cherokee County sheriff’s Capt. Jay Baker said.

“I commend law enforcement for their quick work in arresting a suspect in the tragic shootings,” Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said in a statement. “I have remained in close contact with the White House and APD as they work with the federal, state, and local partners to investigate the suspect who is responsible for this senseless violence in our city.”

What’s known about the victims so far is that six of them were Asian women and two were white. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that all six Asian’s who died were women. South Korea’s foreign ministry told NBC News that four of the six women were Koreans, but their nationalities are yet to be confirmed by U.S. authorities.

Before the suspect, Long was identified by the police, Cherokee County investigators extracted a surveillance video of a suspect near the first shooting scene and published it on social media. Long’s friends and family helped the investigators identify him.

The investigators tracked his phone down to Crisp County and contacted the authorities to inform them about Long’s flee in their direction. His vehicle was spotted and a chase was initiated on Interstate 75 in Crisp County until Long’s SUV went out of control. Police arrested Long and retrieved a 9 millimeter gun hidden in his vehicle.

Before Long was cornered and arrested, he was headed to Florida, and investigators suspected that he was headed there to carry out more shootings.

The police are convinced that Long responsible for the killings due to the video evidence that showed Long’s vehicle in the area of the shooting scenes and the weapon in his possession at the time of the arrest. He was detained at Cherokee County on four counts of murder and one count of aggravated assault, according to the sheriff’s office. Long is also facing four counts of murder in Atlanta, the city police said.

Long’s motives for the shootings are yet to be determined, chief Bryant said. However, preliminary information suggests that the suspect could have a potential sex addiction Long told the investigators that he considered spas as a temptation that he needed to eliminate.