By PAUL ELIAS, Associated Press
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — A former student expelled from a small Christian university and upset about being teased over his poor English skills went to the school to find a female administrator, then opened fire when she was not there, killing at least seven people, police said Tuesday.
One L. Goh "then went through the entire building systematically and randomly shooting victims," Oakland Police Chief Howard Jordan said at a news conference. Goh forced a secretary into a classroom and asked people to line up, Jordan said.
"Not everyone was cooperative, and that's when he began shooting," he said. The dead included six students and the secretary, he said.
Jordan said Goh appeared to have planned the attack for several weeks.
Those connected to the school, including the founder and several students, said the gunman had studied nursing. He was upset with administrators at the school, and also with several students.
"They disrespected him, laughed at him. They made fun of his lack of English speaking skills. It made him feel isolated compared to the other students," Jordan said.
The 43-year-old South Korean national had been expelled, possibly for behavioral problems, according to Jordan.
Goh left behind a string of debts and minor traffic citations in his former home state of Virginia and was evicted from one apartment complex. His brother was killed in a car accident last year in Virginia while on active duty in the U.S. Army, according to Stars and Stripes newspaper.
"We've learned that this was a very chaotic, calculated and determined gentleman that came there with a very specific intent to kill people, and that's what his motive was and that's what he carried out," Jordan told ABC's "Good Morning America."
Soon after the shooting Monday, heavily armed officers swarmed the tiny college of fewer than 100 students in a large industrial park near the Oakland airport. For a time, police believed the gunman could still be inside. But he wasn't.
Instead, officers said he apparently drove about three miles from campus before surrendering to officers inside a supermarket.
Police first received a 911 call at 10:33 a.m. reporting a woman on the ground bleeding. As more calls came in from the school, the first arriving officer found a victim suffering from a life-threatening gunshot wound, he said.
More officers then arrived and formed a perimeter around the school on the belief that the suspect was still inside, he said.
"Potential victims remained inside the building either trapped by a locked door which officers were unable to open," Jordan said. Others were unable to flee because they were injured, he said.
Jordan said there were about 35 people in or near the building when gunfire broke out. Of the seven fatalities, five died at the scene and another two at the hospital. The wounded victims are in stable condition, and at least one person was released from the hospital. They were from various countries, including Nigeria, Nepal and the Phillipines.
He told GMA on Tuesday the victims ranged in age from 21 to 40.
Howard described Goh as cooperating with authorities although he said he has not been "particularly remorseful."
Art Richards said he was driving by the university on his way to pick up a friend when he spotted a woman hiding in the bushes. He pulled over, and when he approached her, she said, "I'm shot" and showed him her arm.
"She had a piece of her arm hanging out," Richards said, noting that she was wounded near the elbow.
As police arrived, Richards said he heard 10 gunshots coming from inside the building. The female victim told him that she saw the gunman shoot one person point-blank in the chest and one in the head.
Tashi Wangchuk, whose wife witnessed the shooting, said he was told by police that the gunman first shot a woman at the front desk, then shot randomly in classrooms.
Reader Comments Read all comments (2)
Sayum Khan 12:09PM April 03, 2012
Sabrina Huddlestun 7th grade student of ID 10:03AM April 03, 2012