Gunman Kills Self, Three Others in Houston
Jan. 9 -- A gunman killed three people and then himself inside a Houston office today after an apparent dispute with business owners.The gunman’s wife later wasfound dead in the cooler of a north Houstonconvenience store the couple owned.
Police say the suspect, described as a man in his late 20s, died at an area hospital after shooting himself in the head.
‘They Murdered My Family …’
Witnesses told police the gunman walkedinto Amko Trading, awholesale company that sells items such as perfume and clothing to 99-cent stores, around noon. He said, “They murdered my family,and now I’m going to murder them.” Then he started shooting.
Police identified the victims as Chung Chang, 58; his wife HyunChang, 54; and their daughter Kathy Chang, 23.
“Preliminary findings indicate that the shooter had an ongoing dispute with either the business or someone who worked for the business,” said Houston police spokesman Robert Hurst.
SWAT teams and ambulances converged at the scene between Harwin and Gessner streets after receiving calls to the 911 emergency line from people reposting a man firing shots. Witnesses told police they saw the man holding apistol at the door of Amko, one of many small wholesale businesses that occupy a strip of buildings in the area.
Police entered the store about 30 minutes after theshootings, spokesman John Leggio said. They found thethree victims dead inside, along with the mortallywounded gunman and two pistols, both of which appeared to have beenfired.
It was unclear who owned the guns, Leggio said.
Longtime Associates
An employee who was inside the storewhen the shots were fired said he and eight customers were lucky to get out alive and unhurt.
“When I heard the shots I got out and ran. I was very scared,”said employee Ruben Zuniga, 29. He said eight customers wereinside, but no one else was hurt.
Kristopher Ahn, who identified himself as the Amko store owner’sattorney, said his client had known the gunman for many years andthey had a business relationship.The gunman, Ahn noted, had been behaving strangely lately,accusing the store owner of sleeping with his wife.
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