Dance teacher to mass shooter: Huu Can Tran, 72, ‘taught lessons almost every night’
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The Monterey mass shooter was once a studio dancer where he killed 10 people during Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations.
Huu Can Tran, 72, gave lessons at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio almost every night in the early 2000s when she lived five minutes away in the San Gabriel Valley.
Tran’s friends, who have been close to the gunman since the early 2010s, revealed to CNN that he was “hostile to a lot of people” in the studio and believed they were saying “bad things about him.”
The gunman’s ex-wife also revealed that she knew Tran for decades during a dance lesson and it wasn’t long until they got married.
The shooting on Saturday left five women and five men dead and injured 10 other people. Tran died Sunday of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after a confrontation with police.
Huu Can Tran, 72, was giving lessons in the studio where he killed 10 people. He also met his ex-wife at the studio.
Tran taught lessons at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio almost every night in the early 2000s when she lived five minutes away in the San Gabriel Valley.
In addition to teaching dance nearly five times a week, Tran was also a truck driver and registered a business, Tran’s Trucking Inc., from 2002 to 2004, according to documents obtained by CNN.
It’s unclear when Tran stopped giving lessons at the studio, but he moved to Hemet in 2013 after some 20 years in Los Angeles.
Tran’s friend lost contact with the gunman the moment he moved and was shocked to learn of the massacre.
The friend also recalled that Tran was quick to anger and did not trust people.
Tran’s ex-wife, whose identity was not released, said she was only married to the gunman for a short time before he filed for divorce in 2005.
She remembered the first time she met Tran and he offered her free dance lessons.
Tran’s love seemed to fade quickly as she claimed her former instructor lost interest in her and was easily angered when she messed up the choreography.
His marriage license showed that Tran is an immigrant from China.
Multiple victims were reported after the shooting in California during New Year’s celebrations.
Police can be seen Sunday surrounding the pickup truck Tran used to get away after he killed five women and five men and injured 10 others.
He was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in the van he used to get away after his attempted second shooting was thwarted by ‘hero’ customers.
The shooting at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio was Tran’s first stop before he went 30 minutes later to the Lai Lai Ballroom in nearby Alhambra, where brave patrons fought him off and seized the gun.
Tran then fled the scene and was on the run until Sunday when police found him in the van he used to flee the massacre.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna identified Tran as the suspect Sunday and confirmed his motive is unknown.
“He intended to kill more people,” Luna said at a news conference Sunday night. “They saved lives,” she said of the sponsors. This could have been so much worse.
The exact ages of the victims were not released, but Luna appeared to be in her 50s. Seven of the injured remained in the hospital, she said.
Tran was carrying what was described as a semi-automatic handgun with an extended magazine, and a second handgun was discovered in the truck where he was found dead, authorities said.
Aerial footage shows officials removing unknown items from the white van after the confrontation.
Tran was carrying what was described as a semi-automatic pistol with an extended magazine, and a second pistol was discovered in the truck where he was found dead, Luna added.
Early Sunday, law enforcement officers entered the van after surrounding it for hours. They heard a gunshot and approached the truck to find Tran’s body slumped over the wheel.
Before locating Tran, Luna said authorities were looking for a white van after witnesses reported seeing the suspect fleeing the Alhambra in that vehicle.
The shooting and manhunt sent a wave of fear through Asian-American communities in the Los Angeles area and cast a shadow over Lunar New Year festivities across the country. Other cities sent additional officers to monitor the celebrations.
Lunar New Year Sunday celebrations in the area of the mass shooting were cancelled.
Interior of the Star Ballroom in Monterey Park, where the shooting occurred Saturday night
Community members were dancing and celebrating after a Lunar New Year celebration that had ended about an hour before the shooting.
The Star Ballroom Dance Studio is a few blocks from City Hall on Monterey Park’s main drag, Garvey Avenue, which is dotted with small-business shopping malls whose signs are in English and Chinese. Cantonese and Mandarin are widely spoken, Chinese holidays are celebrated, and Chinese movies are shown regularly in the city.
The business offered dance classes from tango to rumba to fox trot and rented out its space for events. On Saturday, her website said, she was hosting an event called ‘Star Night’ from 8 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.
Shortly after 10 p.m. Saturday, officers arrived at the ballroom where there were reports of gunshots. Ten people died and 10 were injured.
The massacre was the fifth mass murder in the nation this month. It was also the deadliest attack since May 24, when 21 people were killed at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.