‘Doesn’t seem real.’ What we know about the 8 victims of the Georgia spa shootings
An entrepreneur, new mom and retired U.S. Army veteran were among those killed Tuesday in a shooting spree at three Asian-owned spas in Atlanta and nearby Cherokee County, Georgia.
Accused gunman Robert Aaron Long, 21, has been arrested on charges of murdering eight people, six of whom were Asian women, according to authorities. The slayings captured national attention amid a surge of reported anti-Asian bias and hate across the U.S. — disproportionately targeting Asian women — during the coronavirus pandemic.
On Friday, the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office released the names of the four women killed when police say Long entered the Gold Spa and Aromatherapy Spa in Atlanta and opened fire. They are:
- Soon C. Park, 74
- Hyun J. Grant, 51
- Suncha Kim, 69
- Yong A. Yue, 63
Authorities in Cherokee County, where another shooting at Young’s Asian Massage occurred, have also identified the victims killed in that attack. They are:
- Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33
- Paul Andre Michels, 54
- Xiaojie Tan, 49
- Daoyou Feng, 44
Another person, identified as 30-year-old Elcias Hernandez-Ortiz, survived the shooting at Young’s Asian Massage and remains hospitalized.
Family and friends are remembering those killed and injured in Tuesday’s shootings. Here’s what we know about the victims so far:
Xiaojie ‘Emily’ Tan
Tan was the “sweetest, kindest person you could meet,” Greg Hynson, a regular at the metro-Atlanta spa, told WSB-TV in Atlanta.
The 49-year-old owner of Young’s Asian Massage parlor in Acworth was two days shy of celebrating her 50th birthday when she was killed, according to the news station. Her daughter is a recent graduate from the University of Georgia.
“My heart was in my throat the second I heard about it,” Hynson told WSB-TV. “And once I got here, the whole situation was just so surreal. It still doesn’t seem real.”
Tan’s daughter, 29-year-old Jami Webb, said her mom was her best friend and had dreams of traveling all over the world. Webb described her mom as a hard worker who was proud of the business she built in the U.S. after emigrating from China in 2006, USA Today reported.
“She did everything for me and for the family,” Webb said, according to the newspaper. “She provided everything. She worked every day, 12 hours a day, so that me and our family would have a better life.”
Delaina Ashley Yaun
Yaun and her husband had planned a day of relaxation at Young’s Asian Massage on Tuesday. They were first-time visitors at the day spa and were enjoying a massage in separate rooms when a gunman came in and opened fire.
“They’re innocent. They did nothing wrong,” Yaun’s mother Margaret Rushing told WAGA-TV through tears. “I just don’t understand why he took my daughter.”
Yaun was the mother of two children, including an 8-month-old.
Her husband, who survived the shooting by locking himself in a room, is “taking [the loss] hard,” Yuan’s sister, Dana Toole, told The Guardian.
Toole said her sister was a server at the local Waffle House and is remembered as “an outgoing, family-oriented person who would go out of her way to help others.”
Paul Andre Michels
Michels was brought on as a handyman at the Acworth spa where he was killed on Tuesday. Friends say he was thrilled about the new gig.
“He had been out of work for a while and this was something that came to him and he was really excited about,” family friend Kikiana Whidby told CBS46. “I’m mad. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.”
The retired Army veteran was one of nine siblings whose family grew up in Detroit, his brother, John Michels, told The New York Times. He said his brother served in the infantry in the late ‘80s, was a hardworking businessman and a “strong political conservative.”
“My brother was a very hard-working, loving man,” John Michels said of his brother.
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Hyun G. Grant
Grant was a fun-loving “big kid” who worked long days and nights to support her family, according to her son Randy Park.
“She spent her whole life just existing for my brother and I,” Park told NBC News after the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office identified her Friday as one of four people killed at a massage parlor in Atlanta. “She never had time to travel. She would only be home a certain amount of days every few weeks.”
Park recalled one of the last moments he spent with his mother, dancing and singing along to electronic dance hit “The Business” by Tiesto.
When asked what he would say to his mom, Park replied: “You did a good job. You’ve done enough and finally get some sleep and rest.”
Elcias Hernandez-Ortiz
Hernandez-Ortiz called his wife after he was shot while standing outside Young’s Asian Massage, according to The Washington Post.
“I have been shot! Please come! I need you!” he told his wife, Flor Gonzalez, before losing consciousness.
The local mechanic and auto repair shop owner has “a long journey ahead,” his wife told the Post after visiting Hernandez-Ortiz in the hospital.
This story was originally published March 19, 2021 at 1:07 PM with the headline "‘Doesn’t seem real.’ What we know about the 8 victims of the Georgia spa shootings."