Diablo, Stephen Curry surprises Bay Area kids with Warriors shopping spree. The next hearing in Zhaos case was set for May 3, at which point a judge is expected to set a date for that preliminary hearing. We saw him get on the forklift, and when he turned to see us, he was making fun of the situation.. The violence appeared to stem from a workplace grudge, according to authorities one triggered by a $100 equipment bill from his boss for damage to heavy construction equipment. The suspect, Chunli Zhao, 66, made his first courtroom appearance Wednesday, two days after the shocking shooting spree. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Zhao worked at one of the shooting locations, Mountain Mushroom Farm, but it's unclear what connection he may have had with the victims beyond being co-workers, authorities said. Chunli Zhao is accused of killing four people at a mushroom farm and three others at a site about two miles away. Zhao appeared in court in Redwood City on Wednesday afternoon for an initial hearing, wearing a red jail jumpsuit, according to the Bay Area News Group. Zhao bought and owned the murder weapon, a semi-automatic handgun, Sheriff Corpus said. Alejandro Lopez knew one of the victims - a man he called a brother, a friend he has known for 30 years. Wagstaffe said they have a "feeling on a motive" but are not sharing that at this time. While the motives remain a mystery, the. Elias: Reconfigure Californias fruit stops to check for illegal guns The Board of Supervisors will seek a state grant to try to provide more housing options for county farmworkers including those affected by January's mass shootings at two Half Moon Bay farms. Northern California prosecutors filed seven murder charges Wednesday against the man accused of gunning down farm workers in the quaint oceanside town of Half Moon Bay. Half Moon Bay mass shooting: Suspect enters, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Alameda County DAs new policy will reduce prison sentences through widespread elimination of sentencing enhancements, Half Moon Bay mass shooting: Suspect enters plea in deadly killing spree, Elias: Reconfigure Californias fruit stops to check for illegal guns, Letters: Worksite racism | Exacerbating problems | Cancer research | Plant-based diet | Back health, Letters: County oversight | Compensate farmworkers | Affordable housing | Gun rights | Silencing greatness | Fossil fuel alternatives, Opinion: Mass shooting reveals resistance to farmworker housing, After mass shooting, new Bay Area task force to crack down on unpermitted farmworker housing. A video shows Chunli Zhao, 67, the suspect in the killing of Seven people, being taken into custody in Half Moon Bay on Monday, Jan. 23, 2023. San Mateo County deputies were called to California Terra Garden, a mushr And Aaron Tung, part owner of Concord Farms, did not respond Wednesday to a request for additional comment. Even though Zhao drove to the substation, Sheriffs Captain Eamonn Allen said he would not describe the arrest as a self-surrender. California; Half Moon Bay; CA-92; . The San Mateo County Sheriff's Office said in a Tuesday morning press conference that Chunli Zhao, 66, legally purchased . The sheriff's office says a weapon was located in Zhao's vehicle. An ambulance heads towards downtown Half Moon Bay as Law enforcement investigate a shooting off of Highway 92 in Half Moon Bay, Calif., on Monday, Jan. 23, 2023. He cares about everyone.". Stay informed with the newest Half Moon Bay Review headlines, breaking news, traffic alerts, and contest information weekly. FBI officials walk towards the crime scene at California Terra Garden, formerly the Mountain Mushroom Farm, on Jan. 24. Associated Press writers Janie Har in San Francisco and Sophie Austin in Sacramento, along with researcher Rhonda Shafner in New York, contributed. We'll send breaking news and news alerts to you as they happen. FBI officials walk towards from the crime scene at Mountain Mushroom Farm, Jan. 24, 2023, after a gunman killed several people at two agricultural businesses in Half Moon Bay, Calif. He then drove to a nearby farm where he worked previously and killed three more people, said Eamonn Allen, a sheriff's spokesperson. Zhao, 66, made his first court appearance. It just hits home a little bit, because my dad and a lot of my uncles have been farm workers. San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus said at a news . There, investigators say he killed a former assistant manager whom he felt wronged by, as well as another couple. The alleged gunman in the Half Moon Bay, California, mass shooting, Chunli Zhao, is apprehended Monday. Marcus White is a senior digital writer and producer for the San Francisco Examiner. First published on January 25, 2023 / 7:14 AM. Congresswoman Anna Eshoo released the following statement after the shootings in her congressional district in Half Moon Bay: "I continue to monitor the unfolding tragedy that has taken place in Half Moon Bay. Your e-mail address will be used to confirm your account. As to how many children witnessed this and what they saw: "It's a big rural location so people are working, it's spread out, there's people that live at the location as well. Officials are not releasing what Zhao had said so far to investigators during interrogations. Authorities say Zhao then drove to Concord Farms, where he worked until 2015, and began shooting there. San Mateo County District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe told BuzzFeed News that his office argued that Zhao continues to pose a threat to public safety and because he is not a US citizen, "he has plenty motive for flight.". Authorities believe Zhao acted alone Monday when he entered a mushroom farm where he worked in Half Moon Bay, shot and killed four people, and seriously wounded a fifth. She is also happy the suspect was arrested. Renato Juarez Perez told the news group that Jose and Pedro Romero Perez, who were shot at California Terra Garden, were brothers who had recently moved to the area to be close to family. The charging documents identify Jose Romero Perez as the other person killed and Pedro Romero Perez as the eighth victim, who survived the shooting. Sheriff: Half Moon Bay shootings suspect 'believed' to work with victims. Wagstaffe, speaking outside the courthouse, declined to share any additional details on a motive in the killing of Zhao's current and former coworkers, saying he wanted to keep the details out of the public eye to ensure a fair trial. Weekday - Things to know this week . But when you hear about it, when it comes home to you like, in a small town like this, it really does bring it home. The charges against Zhao include additional allegations that could result in the death penalty or life in prison without parole, though Gov. MORE: There have been more mass shootings in US than days in 2023, database shows. All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! The outlets, citing court documents, reported that Zhao attempted to strangle the roommate with a pillow. The database tracks every mass killing defined as four dead, not including the offender in the U.S. since 2006. Wilson Walkerand Katie Nielsen contributed to this report. A farmworker accused of killing seven people in shootings at two Northern California mushroom farms has been charged with seven counts of murder. An attorney for Zhao did not immediately respond to BuzzFeed News's request for comment. The local newspaper group reported that he covered his face with a piece of paper while entering and leaving the courtroom, saying only the word "yes" through an interpreter when asked by a judge to confirm his name. "At the hospital meeting with victims of a mass shooting when I get pulled away to be briefed about another shooting. Wagstaffe said the Half Moon Bay mass shooting was the largest in San Mateo County's history. Everything is getting thrown at us," he says. Background. "Half Moon Bay is a beloved and tight-knit community, and we all stand with them and the families of the victims during this dark hour.". Sheriff Corpus said the victims were Asian and Latin migrant farm workers. The individual intentionally entered the trackway for unknown reasons. The change in leadership took place on Monday. Cases like this, weve never had one in this county, of this many deaths. Chunli Zhao, 66, showed little emotion while denying the charges against him in the Jan. 23 attack, which ranks as the deadliest mass shooting in San Mateo . Dear Abby: My wife said she doesn't like it, but it's part of my life, Harriette Cole: I don't want the neighbor's kids at my house, Ask Amy: I feel guilty for not speaking up about my co-worker's activities, Ask Amy: I'm your cabin housekeeper, and you apparently have no idea what I do. There was also a note found. Prior to arriving here in 2021, he worked at The Gazette in Colorado Springs, Colo., where he spent nearly a decade covering crime, the military and the public safety net, including health care and social services. A man on a motorcycle was waving his arms and legs around while driving on Adams Street in . A source tells ABC7 there are seven dead and one critically injured at Mountain Mushroom Farm and Concord Farms in HMB. Zhao was arrested on Monday when the sheriff's office located his vehicle in the parking lot of the Sheriffs Office Half Moon Bay Police Substation, the department said. The San Mateo County Coroners Office confirmed the identities of six of the seven victims that were killed in the mass shooting. Prosecutors will determine charges after the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office submits the case later on Tuesday. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre tweeted that President Biden has been briefed on the shootings, and that he has asked federal law enforcement to provide any necessary assistance to the local authorities. ABC7 was told the Holy Family Children's Center went on lockdown around 3:20 p.m. A family reunification center has been set up at the IDES Hall on 735 Main Street. Servando Martinez Jimenez said his brother Marciano Martinez Jimenez, one of the victims, was a delivery person and manager at one of the farms. A shooter killed 11 people during a Lunar New Year's celebration in Monterey Park on Saturday. He later died by suicide. Chunli Zhao, 66, was the lone suspect in Monday's shooting, which authorities described as " workplace violence ", in the town of Half Moon Bay near San Francisco. A subsequent Bay Area News Group investigation found that laws meant to ensure livable farmworker housing often went unenforced in San Mateo County, allowing farm owners to neglect their struggling workforce, including the shooter and his victims. Before that, he covered education and general assignment stories at The Greeley Tribune in northern Colorado. Gavin Newsom has issued a moratorium on executions. The new year has brought six mass killings in the U.S. in fewer than three weeks, accounting for 39 deaths. A source tells ABC7 News the suspect worked at one of the mushroom farms, and all the victims were coworkers. Theres an awful lot more to learn.. Zhao worked at Mountain Mushroom Farm at 12761 San Mateo Road in Half Moon Bay, the location in which four people died of gunshot wounds. Jan 25, 2023, 01:12 PM EST. Officials discussing the investigation mentioned a possible gang link to the killings. "That's why from this point on the sheriff's office will not be making public statements about the case," he told reporters. Chunli Zhao, the 66-year-old Half Moon Bay resident who authorities say shot eight farmworkers last Monday, killing seven, has been charged with multiple counts of murder and one count of attempted murder, prosecutors said last week. NBC Bay Area cited police sources with direct knowledge of the investigation to report that Zhao had told investigators that he had been disrespected by co-workers in the years leading up to the shootings. As for the shooting investigation, there were several new pieces of information passed along. The charges include additional allegations that could result in the death penalty or life in prison without parole, though Gov. The Consulate General of Mexico in San Francisco on Tuesday confirmed that two of the people killed were Mexican nationals, as is the man hospitalized at Stanford. TheFarmworker Caravan, an organization that has been conducting a relief drive to provide support for farm workers impacted by recent flooding and the Half Moon Bay mass shooting, is asking for donations and volunteers to help with their efforts. Stephanie Baer is a reporter with BuzzFeed News and is based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Half Moon Bay is a small, laid-back, coastal and agricultural city about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of San Francisco. The maximum penalty for these charges if convicted would be life in prison or the death penalty, according to Wagstaffe, who said he "plans to learn everything I can" about the suspect and the impact on the victims' families before deciding whether to pursue the death penalty. The man accused of gunning down seven migrant farmworkers last month during a shooting spree at two mushroom farms in the coastal hamlet of Half Moon Bay pleaded not guilty Thursday to a slew of murder charges. HALF MOON BAY -- A farmworker accused of killing seven people in a mass shooting at two Half Moon Bay mushroom farms was charged Wednesday with seven counts of murder and one of attempted murder. Carlos Martinez-Maya spoke with us at around 5 p.m. Monday, about his uncle who was working at the mushroom farm along Cabrillo Highway. "We saw all the sirens going one way and then all the sirens going the other way. Check out Bay Area safety tracker, Tracking the drought: Map shows conditions across SF Bay Area, Bay Area Life; Sundays at 6:30 p.m. on ABC7, Watch moment police arrest suspect in deadly Half Moon Bay shootings, Woman who witnessed HMB shooting suspect's arrest shares details, There have been more mass shootings in US than days in 2023, database shows, latest on the deadly Half Moon Bay shootings here. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. After the shooting, California Terra Garden announced plans to spend the next 12 months building new permanent housing for its workers on its property along Highway 92. Authorities responded to the 12700 block of San Mateo Road at the Mountain Mushroom Farm, close to Rice Trucking-Soil Farm off of Hwy. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. White is a reporter with BuzzFeed news and news alerts to you as they happen ``. 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