"When he's around any Asian, he panics and delusions. ”
On the 17th local time, the Dallas police in Texas announced the arrest of the gunman of the Hair Salon shooting in Koreatown, and said that the person was suspected of suffering from persecution paranoia against Asians.
According to police, the shooting is being investigated as a hate crime. Police now suspect that the gunman may also have been behind two other shootings in the region, both of which also targeted Asian-run premises.
NBC: Police say the Dallas hair salon shooting was a hate crime and the suspects have "panic and delusions" about Asians.
According to the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) reported on the 17th, the gunman's name is Jeremy Theron Smith, a black man, now 36 years old (also called him 37 years old by the US media). On the 11th local time, Smith broke into a hair salon in Koreatown, Dallas, shot and wounded 3 women. The salon is run by Koreans, and the owners, employees and customers who were injured were all Korean women.
After the incident, the daughter of one of the injured told The Associated Press that Smith had acted calm during the attack. "He was calm," Jane Bae said. "He just walked over and then stood there — didn't walk around — just stood there, fired about 20 shots, and then left calmly."
According to NBC, Smith was arrested on the 16th and subsequently charged with 3 counts of serious assault with a lethal weapon. On the 17th, the Dallas police held a press conference to report more details of the case.
According to the Associated Press reported on the 18th, Dallas police said that at the time of the crime, Smith walked into the hair salon with a point 22 caliber rifle, fired about 13 shots, and then drove away in a maroon van. One woman suffered an arm injury, a foot injury, and a lower back injury. According to police, the three Korean-American women have all been discharged from the hospital and are recovering.
Dallas police released photos of Smith and the fleeing vehicle at the time of the crime
The related investigation around the case is still ongoing, but according to NBC, Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia confirmed that the shooting was being investigated as a hate crime. "Now it's a matter of hate — it's a hate crime," Garcia said. "I can tell you that I know our community thinks it's a hate crime, and I see it as a hate crime, and so do our employees."
Garcia mentioned that Smith had a car accident with an Asian-American man a few years ago, and since then, "when he's around any Asian-American, he feels panic and delusional." ”
Jeremy Theron Smith
According to testimony from an arrest warrant obtained by The Associated Press, police learned of Smith's "paranoia" after questioning his girlfriend. The Associated Press said Smith's girlfriend told police he suffered from a delusion that Asian-Americans would try to hurt him.
According to testimony, Smith's girlfriend told police he had had delusions about being persecuted asian-Americans since he had been in a car accident with an Asian-American man two years ago. Because of this delusion, she said, Smith has been admitted to several psychiatric hospitals. His girlfriend described that whenever Smith was with Asian-Americans, "he had delusions that Asian gangsters were stalking him or trying to hurt him." She also said Smith had previously been fired for "verbally attacking" her Asian-American boss.
Garcia declined to comment on whether Smith was diagnosed with mental illness and whether Smith had legal access to the guns used in the shooting. Garcia said the two issues are still under investigation.
In addition to the shooting on the 11th, police now suspect that Smith may also be behind two other shootings in the area. According to the Associated Press, the two shootings were aimed at Asian-American businesses, and although neither caused injuries, the suspect drove a vehicle similar and was similar to the maroon van smith drove on the 11th. Garcia said on the 17th that the police are still investigating whether Smith is involved.
Currently, Smith is being held in the Dallas County Jail, where Smith was released on bail of $300,000, according to prison records, and it is unclear whether he has a lawyer.
Earlier on the 17th, the FBI said it had opened a federal hate crime investigation into the case with federal prosecutors in Texas and the civil rights department of the U.S. Department of Justice. According to Garcia, state prosecutors may add hate crime charges against Smith later.
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