Monterey Park mass shooter was banned from dance studio where he killed 11 on Lunar New Year
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The gunman who killed 11 people at a Monterey Park dance hall before opening fire at a nearby dance hall has been banned from both clubs, a member has revealed.
The dancers said Huu Can Tran, 72, was kicked out of the Star Ballroom Studio and Lai Lai club about five years ago for harassing women and being too “argumentative.”
Tran fired 42 rounds in the ballroom Saturday night at a Lunar New Year massacre in California, before driving to the nearby club where he was disarmed.
Police also revealed Thursday that the weapon he used in the mass shooting was a Cobray model CM11-9, while a .308 caliber bolt-action rifle was found at his home.
Montery Park gunman Huu Can Tran, pictured, was kicked out of the Star Ballroom Dance Studio, where he killed 11 people, and the nearby Lai Lai club, where he was disarmed.
Local dancer Pinki Chen (pictured right with victim Ming Ma) claims the Monterey Park gunman hadn’t visited the clubs in five to eight years.
Previous reports suggested that Tran, who shot himself behind the wheel of his vehicle the day after the massacre, was a regular at the Star Ballroom in Monterey Park, California.
Police said Thursday that his victims did not know him because he had not been at the studio for at least five years.
Members of the tight gentlemen’s dance community told Dailymail.com on Thursday that his absence was even longer as he had not been seen in nearly eight years.
Dancer Pinki Chen claimed that Tran was banned from both clubs where he would later open fire after irritating the dancers and teachers.
“When he came to the dance halls, he would offer free lessons but tell the woman that in return she could only dance with him,” Chen told DailyMail.com.
“Many of the dancers and teachers complained that he was argumentative and ultimately Tran was no longer allowed to return to either Star Dance Studio or Lai Lai.”
The 11 victims of the horrific mass shooting in Monterey Park that occurred in the midst of Lunar New Year celebrations are: My Nhan, 65, Lilian Li, 63, Xiujuan Yu, 57, Muoi Ung, 67, Hong Jian, 62, Diana Tom , 70 , Yu Kao, 72, Chia Yau, 76, Valentino Alvero, 68, Wen Yu, 64 and Ming Ma, 72,
Detectives recovered three firearms from Tran, including a Cobray CM11-9 model, pictured, purchased in 1999 identified as the murder weapon.
A Hemet is a Savage Arms .308 caliber bolt-action rifle was found at Tran’s residence.
After being banned from the two dance studios, Tran reportedly spent her time at the Pavilion Club House in neighboring Granada Hills, which closed its doors in 2018.
Meanwhile, another dancer, Mr. Chu, said that he used to see the killer every Friday night from 2016 to 2017.
In a We Chat group dedicated to the dance community, Chu wrote, “She talked to many dancer friends about her unfortunate life, divorce, and not having a place to live.”
So, you could imagine that he was very depressed.
‘Her greatest pride and joy was dancing, but that was taken away from her.
The shooting at the Star Ballroom was the nation’s fifth mass murder this month and the deadliest attack since May 24, when 21 people were killed at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
The Lai Lai dance hall and studio near the site of a deadly shooting on Saturday
‘On a lonely New Year’s Eve, he chose to bring the weapons to destroy everything. For him, this is the end.
It is reported that Tran met his ex-wife at the Star Ballroom after he offered her free dance lessons.
The couple was married for only a short period of time before he filed for divorce in 2005.
Tran had been living in the Lakes at Hemet West, a mobile home park billed as a “55+ active living community,” according to reports in the Los Angeles Times.
It comes after officers revealed there was no known connection between Tran and his victims.
Tran shot dead 11 people, ranging in age from 57 to 76, but wounded nine others.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said in a statement Thursday: “To this day, based on interviews, investigators have been unable to establish a connection between the suspect and any of the victims.”
Tran’s white cargo van was stopped by police on Sunday, but he killed himself before a SWAT team broke into the vehicle.
‘The suspect was not married and was not romantically linked to any of the victims. According to witness accounts, the suspect has not frequented the place in the last five years.
“It’s frustrating when something like this happens that’s so tragic. We’re trying to figure it out, and it doesn’t make sense.’
Investigators also recovered a total of three firearms registered to the suspect along with a motorcycle that they believe may have been an alternate getaway vehicle.
The vehicle had been strategically placed in the 200 block of South Garfield Avenue in Monterey Park.
The murder weapon was identified as a Cobray model CM11-9 (also known as the Mac-10), police said.
The gun was not registered with the state of California and was purchased in 1999 in the city of Monterey Park.
Meanwhile, the weapon used by Tran to commit suicide was identified as a Norinco pistol 7.62 X 25 mm.
The rifle recovered from the suspect’s Hemet residence is a Savage Arms .308 caliber bolt-action rifle.
The suspect had no recent criminal record, but records show he was arrested 33 years ago in 1990 for illegal possession of a firearm.
Just weeks before the massacre, he went to the police to report decades-old poisoning allegations against his family.
Shootings during Lunar New Year celebrations sent a wave of fear through Asian-American communities.
Local community members have left flowers at a memorial outside the Star Ballroom dance studio.
Hemet police confirmed that he had been to their precinct and promised to return with more evidence of his claims, but failed to do so.
Among those killed in the crossfire was 72-year-old Ming Wei Ma.
Reports have labeled Ma as the owner of the studio, but Chen claimed that Ma was no longer the owner, but a long-term manager of the studio.
She said: ‘My friend Mr. Ma was a man of honor and very kind to everyone.
‘The children referred to him as Grandpa Ma. Everyone in the dance community loved him very much, including those who weren’t dancers.’
Ma leaves behind two children, Ray and Mary.
Tributes have also arrived for the other victims including: My Nhan, 65, Lilian Li, 63, Xiujuan Yu, 57, Muoi Ung, 67, Hong Jian, 62, Diana Tom, 70, Yu Kao, 72, Chia Yau, 76 , Valentino Alvero, 68 and Wen Yu, 64.
Anyone with information about a motive in the case is urged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office of Homicide at 323-890-5500.