8 Dead in California Hair Salon Shooting

Oct. 12, 2011 — -- A shooter opened fire in a Southern California hair salon, leaving eight people dead and another wounded, according to ABC News' Los Angeles affiliate, KABC.

Six of the fatally wounded were declared dead on the scene and the three people injured were hospitalized in critical condition. Two of those victims died, police later said.

Authorities responded to the shooting at Salon Meritage in Seal Beach, Calif., a coastal town about 30 miles south of Los Angeles. The salon is in the 500 block of Pacific Coast Highway.

"Our officers arrived on scene and found multiple gunshot victims inside of the salon," Sgt. Steve Bowles of the Seal Beach Police Department told reporters this evening. "Other responding officers who arrived saw ... what they thought was a suspect vehicle leaving the area and made a car stop on that vehicle, and took that suspect into custody."

It was not immediately clear if the victims were customers or employees.

Bowles said the salon was busy at the time of the shooting, with every station occupied. He said it appeared that the victims were seeking shelter when they were shot. Some of the people inside were able to escape unharmed.

The 911 call came from outside of the business.

A suspect who police believe was the only shooter was taken into custody a half-mile from the crime scene. Police said the white male was driving through a residential area in the direction of Huntington Beach, Calif.

Authorities have not yet released the suspect's name, but said they found multiple weapons in the suspect's car. KABC reported that he appeared to be wearing body armor.

Police said the suspect was cooperative at the time of the arrest and was taken to the Seal County Police Department..

Police do not know the man's relationship to the salon or the shooting victims. A motive for the shooting has not yet been determined.