Suspect of California mass shooting on Lunar New Year's Eve found dead

LOS ANGELES -- The suspect of the California mass shooting on Saturday night was found dead in another city of what authorities believe was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Five women and five men were killed while another 10 people were injured in a mass shooting in the city of Monterey Park, 16 km east of Los Angeles downtown, the authorities said Sunday.

The fatal incident occurred at 10:22 p.m. (06:22 GMT) Saturday local time in Star Ballroom Dance Studio, a popular ballroom dance facility operated for about 30 years, when it was hosting an event to celebrate the countdown to the Chinese Lunar New Year.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said Sunday evening that the suspect was identified as Huu Can Tran, who entered the party and opened fire before fleeing the scene in a white van.

The vehicle was pulled over in a parking lot Sunday morning and surrounded by policemen from Torrance, located roughly 50 km southwest of Monterey Park after they heard a gunshot from inside the vehicle.

The man inside the van, who was found dead following a three-hour standoff with the Special Weapons and Tactics team, was confirmed as the suspect later, according to Luna.

No motive was disclosed at a Sunday evening news conference.

Monterey Park, a city of 61,000 residents located on the eastern edge of Los Angeles, has a majority Asian American population. Starting Saturday, the city hosted an annual two-day Chinese Lunar New Year celebration, one of the largest events in the region.

Thousands of shoppers took part in Saturday's celebrations which was concluded about one hour before the fatal shooting. The festivities scheduled for Sunday have been canceled.