Suspect identified in Dallas salon capturing as FBI opens hate crime investigation

The incident may be linked to shootings at Asian-run companies, police mentioned.

17 May 2022, 21:08

• 7 min read

Dallas police arrested a suspect in reference to the Could 11 taking pictures of three women in a hair salon within the metropolis's Koreatown. The incident is being investigated as a hate crime and could possibly be linked to a collection of recent shootings at Asian-run businesses within the metropolis, police mentioned.

The victims, the salon proprietor, an employee and a buyer, are all Korean, according to ABC affiliate station WFAA in Dallas. The ladies suffered nonfatal accidents and have been transported to an area hospital, according to police.

Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia identified the suspect as 36-year-old Jeremy Smith during a press conference on Tuesday. Garcia said that Smith was charged with three counts of aggravated assault.

"During our investigation, detectives discovered that two years ago Smith had a motorcar crash with an Asian male," Garcia said. "Since this crash, Smith has had panic assaults and delusions when he is round anybody of Asian descent."

The Dallas Police Department and the FBI are investigating the incident as a hate crime.

"The Dallas FBI Field Workplace, the U.S. Attorney’s Workplace for the Northern District in Texas and the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice have opened a federal hate crime investigation into the incident at Hair World Salon in Dallas,” a spokesperson for the FBI area workplace in Dallas advised ABC Information on Monday. "We're in close communication with Dallas Police and are partnering together to thoroughly examine this incident. As this is an ongoing investigation, we aren't able to remark additional right now."

Police met with community members at a town hall in Koreatown on Monday amid considerations for the general public's safety.

Two of the taking pictures victims – the proprietor and an worker – were present on the meeting, based on WFAA. The worker spoke with the help of an interpreter and her was face covered. The ladies didn't reveal their names.

Garcia mentioned that police continue to research two different shootings that could be linked to the salon capturing.

"Presently, there have been no arrests on these instances," Garcia stated, adding that the investigation is ongoing.

The arrest comes days after Garcia announced during a Friday press conference that law enforcement “concluded three recent shootings of Asian run businesses could also be related.” The suspect in each incident was driving the same car.

This picture reveals the interior of Hair World Salon in Dallas on Thursday, Might 12, 2022. Police are looking for a person who opened hearth contained in the salon in Dallas' Koreatown area, wounding three individuals.

Police mentioned they discovered from a witness report that an unknown Black male parked in what appeared to be "a darkish colour minivan-type automobile" on Royal Lane after which walked throughout the car parking zone and into the institution, allegedly opening hearth as soon as he entered the salon.

Police also released a safety picture of a maroon minivan they mentioned the shooter fled the scene in.

Garcia mentioned the shooting at the salon may be linked to at least one that happened a day before and one that befell final month.

Police discovered from witness experiences that on April 2, a driver in a crimson minivan drove previous a strip mall of Asian-run companies and fired shots at three businesses. No one was injured.

And on Might 10, a suspect in a burgundy van or car drove by and shot into Asian-run businesses close to 4849 Sunnyvale Avenue, police stated.

“Out of an abundance of caution, we have now reached out to our partners to make them aware of the possible connection and ask for his or her help,” Garcia stated. “This contains the FBI and member businesses of the Joint Terrorism Task Force. We are also working with North Texas police partners to find out if this legal motion has or is happening in their jurisdictions.”

Hair World Salon in Dallas, Could 12, 2022. A person opened hearth inside the hair salon in Dallas' Koreatown area, wounding three people.

Garcia stated police will likely be growing the presence of high visibility patrol officers in areas within the city where there are giant Asian American populations.

“We're turning to every resident of the town of Dallas to keep an eye out and safeguard our city,” Garcia mentioned. “Hate has no place right here.”

These incidents in Dallas come amid a spate of attacks targeting Asian Individuals across the nation, which spiked in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.

ABC's Jim Ryan studies:

ABC Information' Bill Hutchinson and contributed to this report.