An indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Santa Ana May 10 charged the man who opened fire, killing a prominent Orange County doctor and injuring five others, last May at the Laguna Woods Geneva Presbyterian Church with 98 federal hate crimes.
If convicted, David Chou, 69, of Las Vegas, faces a maximum penalty of death or life in prison without the possibility of parole, the Department of Justice announced in a news release May 11.
Chou—a Chinese immigrant and U.S. Citizen—killed John Cheng, 52, and attempted to kill 44 others, according to the indictment.
“Chou allegedly acted because of the victims’ national origin and religion, and he intentionally obstructed the victims’ religious exercise,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Chou faces 45 counts of obstructing the free exercise of religion by force, 45 counts of attacking church congregants because of their national origin and faith, one count of attempting to damage or destroy a building with fires and explosives, one count of carrying explosives during the commission of a federal felony offense and six counts of using a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence, officials announced.
Members of the Irvine-based Taiwanese Presbyterian Church, who rent space at the Laguna Woods church, were enjoying lunch after their 11:30 a.m. Sunday service May 15, 2022, when Chou opened fire.
He had super glued and chained the exits of the church beforehand, and Molotov cocktails and magazines of ammunition were found behind a curtain in the church’s banquet hall by police, according to media reports at the time.
In a press conference the day after the shooting, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said Chou’s actions were politically motivated, due to political tensions between China and Taiwan.
“There’s a lot of evidence that absolutely at this point in time indicates that the suspect had an absolute bias against the Taiwanese people, its country,” he said.
Cheng, a resident of Laguna Niguel, tackled and disabled Chou before being fatally shot.
Other congregants then restrained Chou with an extension cord before authorities arrived.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s office said Chou will next appear for arraignment, where he will likely enter a plea of not guilty. No date has been scheduled yet for the proceedings.
He is also being prosecuted by the Orange County District Attorney, where he faces one count of murder and five counts of attempted murder.
Chou is being held at the Theo Lacy facility in Orange and is next scheduled to appear in Superior Court, in the Orange County case, July 14 according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department website.
A spokesperson for the sheriff’s department wasn’t immediately available for comment.
