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Police: Victims in Korean spa shooting near Atlanta were 2 married couples; gunman was brother
NORCROSS, Ga. (AP) ' A gunman shot two of his sisters and their husbands inside a Korean health spa in an Atlanta suburb and then killed himself, police said Wednesday.
Surveillance video showed a man walking into the Su Jung Health Sauna on Tuesday night and getting into an argument with someone, then opening fire, police said.
The shootings happened in the salon area at the front of the building, Norcross Police Chief Warren Summers said. She didn't say what the motive was. Police recovered a .45-caliber gun at the salon.
Four people were found dead inside, and another was taken to a hospital before being pronounced dead, investigators said.
Yellow police tape surrounded the large parking lot in front of the stand-alone brick building with decorative white columns and white Greek-style statuary. The spa is located on a busy highway lined with strip malls and small businesses, many with signs in Korean and English. It was closed Wednesday.
Investigators say they believe about 20 people were inside the spa when the gunfire began around 8:30 p.m. The salon also has a sauna and other rooms.
Sonny Lee, who owns Lee's Auto Center next door to the spa, said the owner had been in the community for about 15 years and had recently remodeled his business. Lee said the spa owner was very community-oriented.
"He donated a lot to the different things in the Korean community," Lee said.
Police have not identified the victims yet.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation joined the probe, GBI spokesman John Bankhead said.
"We actually sent two crime scene specialists, given the situation out there with the number of people who were shot and killed," Bankhead said.
He said investigators were using 3-D technology that was designed for architecture and construction jobs and is now being used in some investigations to recreate crime scenes.
The spa is about 15 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta, on Buford Highway between Peachtree Industrial Boulevard and Interstate 85 in Gwinnett County.
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