An instructor at a ballroom dance studio where a gunman opened fire last night during a Chinese New Year celebration has paid tribute to the ten dead and ten injured.
Liana Bakhtiarova, who was not present at the time of the shooting, is the US Ballroom Champion and ranked among the top 22 ballroom dancers in the world.
“A prayer for all dear friends and colleagues involved in the mass shooting at the Star Dance studio in Monterey Park,” she wrote on Instagram the morning after the fatal attack. “What a sad day for our industry.”
Bakhtiarova teaches at the Chinese Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park on Block 100 of West Garvey Avenue, about 7 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.
Twenty minutes later, another ballroom about three miles north was also attacked, but it’s not yet clear if the incidents are related. No one was injured in the second incident.
Liana Bakhtiarova (right), an instructor at the ballroom dancing studio where a gunman opened fire during a New Year’s celebration last night, has paid tribute to the ten dead and ten injured. She is pictured here with dance partner Valeriu Cause (left).
Bakhtiarova teaches at Chinese-owned Star Ballroom Dance in Monterey Park on the 100 block of West Garvey Avenue
On Saturday night, the Star Dance Studio was holding a Chinese New Year celebration when at around 10:20 p.m., an hour after the event officially ended, a male gunman entered and began firing indiscriminately.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said the suspect was Asian, between 30 and 50 years old, and did not have an assault rifle.
About 20 minutes after that shooting at the Star Studio, an Asian male suspect armed with a gun entered another dance studio in the neighboring suburb of Alhambra. No one was killed at the second studio as it closed indefinitely.
“Some people snatched the gun from him, and that person ran away,” Luna said. Police have yet to confirm whether the two incidents are related.
The suspect remains at large.
In September 2022, Bakhtiarova was the winner of the US Dance Championships
The website for Star Ballroom (pictured) describes the venue as one of the largest studios in LA
“A prayer for all dear friends and colleagues involved in the mass shooting at the Star Dance studio in Monterey Park,” she wrote on Instagram the morning after the attack
The Lai Lai Ballroom and Studio at Alhambra, the second targeted venue, is located at Block 100 of South Garfield Avenue and is approximately three miles north of Star and a ten minute drive.
Star Ballroom Studio opened a decade ago and is owned by Maria Liang, a former banker at the East West Bank – a popular bank in the Sino-American community.
While in China she worked for Nike and Australian energy company Norton Christensen, but her passion for dance led her to open Star Ballroom Dance Studio a decade ago.
It has since grown into one of Southern California’s most popular professional ballroom studios. Its website describes the venue as one of the largest studios in LA.
“Star Ballroom Dance Studio was founded in Los Angeles 30 years ago. With 10,000 square meters of floor space, it is one of the largest dance studios in the city with dozens of teachers and artists from Europe, America and China,” it said.
In September 2022, Bakhtiarova was the winner of the US Dance Championships with dance partner Valeriu Cause.
Star Ballroom owner Maria Liang, who left a successful career in the business to open the dance hall in 2013
Twenty minutes later, another ballroom about three miles north was also attacked, but it’s not yet clear if the incidents are related
Community members danced and celebrated after a Lunar New Year celebration that ended about an hour before the shooting
The interior of the Star Ballroom
Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce China head Chester Chong told ABC7 outlet that he believes the massacre was not a hate crime but rather an example of domestic unrest taken to the extreme.
He said he believes the shooting was caused by hatred between a “wife and husband” and that it was a “personal case” that led to a horrific ending.
Scott Wiese, the Monterey Park Police Chief, said that while it is now safe to attend Lunar New Year celebrations in other parts of the community, the investigation launched today is extensive and will last “many days and perhaps many months.” ‘
Wiese said law enforcement is seeking information from the community and hopes members will work closely with law enforcement as the search continues.