Details are emerging after a man was arrested for allegedly committing a series of killings in Georgia on Tuesday.
Robert Alan Long, 21, of Woodstock, was arrested in south Georgia after he allegedly killed eight people of Asian descent in shootings at three different massage parlors.
JUST IN: Robert Aaron Long, 21 , is booked into jail accused of murdering 8 people in shooting spree targeting Asian massage parlors across metro Atlanta. pic.twitter.com/xrU5JCNCMx
— Michael Seiden (@SeidenWSBTV) March 17, 2021
One of the massage parlors was in Cherokee County. The other two were located in the northeast Atlanta metro area.
Authorities say Long targeted Gold Spa and Aromatherapy in Atlanta – two spas directly across the street from each other. Young’s Asian Massage Parlor was the target in Cherokee County.
Tuesday night, the Crisp County Sheriff’s office, in conjunction with the Georgia State Patrol, took Long into custody after a brief chase, which ended with a PIT maneuver that brought the Hyundai Tucson Long was driving to a stop. Long then surrendered.
Immediately, some media outlets promoted claims that anti-Asian bigotry could have been the motive for the attack. Seattle’s KIRO shared the following tweet from a group called Stop Asian American Pacific Islander Hate.
“Few details have been released, including whether or not the shootings were related or motivated by hate. But right now there is a great deal of fear and pain in the Asian American community that must be addressed,” the tweet said.
Few details have been released, including whether or not the shootings were related or motivated by hate. But right now there is a great deal of fear and pain in the Asian American community that must be addressed.
— Stop AAPI Hate (@StopAAPIHate) March 17, 2021
But Wednesday morning, WSBTV reported that the suspect’s motive was his own sexual issues, and that Long confessed to the alleged crimes.
“During interviewing Tuesday night, the Cherokee County sheriff’s office said [Long] confessed to the shootings in Cherokee County and Atlanta,” that report said. “Long told investigators the crimes were not racially motivated. Long told investigators that he blames the massage parlors for providing an outlet for his addiction to sex.”
He appeared in court Wednesday morning.
As of Wednesday morning, the names of some of the victims have been released.
WSBTV said that Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33, of Acworth, Paul Andre Michels, 54, of Atlanta, Xiaojie Yan, 49, of Kennesaw, and Daoyou Feng, 44, were among those killed in the deadly rampage.
Four more deceased victims remain unidentified.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a contributor at The Georgia Star News and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected]
