Apr 2, 2021 - Politics & Policy

Orange shooting suspect charged with 4 counts of murder

Jacob Knutson

Orange Police Chief Dan Adams posts a picture of Aminadab Gaxiola Gonzalez during a press conference on April 1.

The suspected gunman who killed four people — including a 9-year-old boy — at a business complex in Orange, California, on Wednesday was charged with four felony counts of murder, prosecutors announced Friday.

Driving the news: Prosecutors said the suspect, Aminadab Gaxiola Gonzalez, who was also wounded during the shooting, knew all of the adult victims through personal or business relationships.

They also said that Gaxiola locked the gates to the business complex from the inside prior to the shooting, preventing victims from fleeing the building and forcing responding officers to engage him from outside the building.

What they're saying: “The taking of the life of another human being is the most serious of crimes and the slaughter of multiple people while they were essentially locked in a shooting gallery is nothing short of terrifying,” District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in a statement.

The big picture: Gaxiola has also been charged with attempted murder of two police officers and attempted murder of a woman, among other charges, prosecutors said.

The incident in Orange was the third major mass shooting in the United States in just over two weeks. A gunman killed 10 people in Boulder, Colorado, and eight people were killed in shootings in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Orange shooting suspect charged with 4 counts of murder

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