A search is underway for a suspect who opened hearth at a Dallas hair salon, and injured three Korean women inside earlier than fleeing Wednesday, police say.
Dallas police responded to the Hair World Salon at 2216 Royal Lane at 2:20 p.m. native time, in an space referred to as the Asian Trade District, generally known as the town’s Koreatown.
The suspect, described as a Black male wearing all black, walked into the enterprise and began capturing, hanging the three women, police stated in a news launch.
NBC Dallas Fort-Worth studies the salon is a Korean-owned enterprise and all of the victims — the proprietor, an worker and a buyer — have been Korean women.
A motive for the capturing has not but been confirmed. Police Sgt. Warren Mitchell stated in a media briefing Wednesday that investigators don’t have any indication that the capturing was a hate crime, however aren’t ruling it out.
The victims have been transported to native hospitals with non-life-threatening accidents, authorities stated. Mitchell stated the women have been all apparently shot of their extremities.
The suspect left the scene in a maroon minivan, police stated.
Law enforcement shared video surveillance stills of the suspect, showing to carry a big rifle-like weapon, and the car he left in.
Police are asking for assist in figuring out and finding the suspect, described as 5’7 to five’10 with a skinny construct, curly medium size hair, and a connecting beard.
Crime Stoppers is providing a $5,000 reward for information resulting in an arrest.
The investigation is ongoing and the FBI has been referred to as to help within the probe.
The FBI’s discipline workplace in Dallas informed NBC News in a press release Thursday morning that the company is in communication with Dallas police and “coordinating closely.”
“If, in the course of the local investigation, information comes to light of a potential federal violation, the FBI is prepared to investigate,” a spokesperson stated.
Police are assuring the general public that the suspect might be discovered.
“It just brings an added fear in this community, and we want to make sure we do what we can to ease their fear,” Mitchell stated.
Dallas City Councilman Omar Narvaez, who represents the district the place the violence unfolded, denounced the capturing in a press release to NBC News.
“These acts of violence are disturbing, and I have full faith that the Dallas Police Department will capture the perpetrators,” he said. “The Asian Trade District AKA KoreaTown is a vibrant business community which has grown exponentially over the years, and I am committed to making sure this important business district continues to thrive.”
He described the area of the shooting as a bustling business neighborhood, ranging from food to retail, insurance and law, run almost exclusively by Korean immigrants.
Dr. Brian Ahn, the Chairman of the Korean Society of Dallas, told NBC News the community is afraid following the shooting.
“I think people feel scared because many businesses are here. Korean people want to protect the community and prevent crime,” he stated, calling for peace. “Right now people are like, ‘Oh my God, it could happen to me.’”
He noted there hasn’t been anti-Asian hate crimes that he’s noticed in this area before, and said a lack of gun control is a contributing issue in the incident.
While it’s not clear if this incident was a hate crime, it comes at a time the nation has seen rising hate crimes against the Asian American community amid the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic.
A report by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism found that anti-Asian hate crime in the U.S. increased by 339 percent in 2021 compared to the year prior.
The Wednesday salon shooting recalls the Atlanta-area spas shooting in March 2021 when a gunman entered three separate spas, killing eight people, including six women of Asian descent.
After that attack, President Joe Biden unveiled efforts to address anti-Asian violence, and in May 2021 the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act was signed into law. The legislation directs the Justice Department to expedite the review of Covid-19-related hate crimes reported to law enforcement agencies, establish ways to report such incidents online and perform public outreach.