Biden orders flags to half-staff after Lunar New Year massacre

WASHINGTON (WMTV) – Flags across the United States will fly at half-staff for much of the week to honor the ten people killed at a Los Angeles-area ballroom over the weekend.

On Sunday, President Joe Biden ordered flags lowered through sunset on Thursday, Jan. 26, at all federal buildings, including military facilities and offices abroad.

The killings in Monterey Park struck one of California’s largest celebrations of a holiday observed in many Asian cultures, dealing another blow to a community that has been the target of high-profile violence in recent years.

The suspect, 72-year-old Huu Can Tran, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on Sunday in the van that authorities say he used to flee after being prevented from attacking another dance hall. The New York Times reported that a man whose family runs that venue wrested the gun from the assailant.

Very little is known about Tran or his connection to the targeted community and dance halls. Public records show he once had addresses in Monterey Park and neighboring cities.

The massacre was the nation’s fifth mass killing this month and was the deadliest attack since May 24, when 21 people were killed in an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

Click here to download the NBC15 News app or our NBC15 First Alert weather app.