[100] Half Moon Bay, California

We have an active shooter. We have an acter shoots go ahead of the quaire. That's a mass casualty. Welcome to Active Shooter, a podcast that covers the wys, the hows, and the aftermath of active shooter and mass casualty events. I have an active shooter in the building. A checking call says they are big attack. What we got chus Fliers four fifteen as Bridge ninety one. So I'm like, oh, I'm at a fire, active shooter. Orts of an active shooter, Active shooter, active shooter in mash

casualty incidents. Thank you for listening. You are listening to Active Shooter, a podcast that may contain adult themes, explicit language, and graphic depictions of violence. Portions of this show may be traumatic for those under eighteen. Listener discretion is advised. Breaking news. It's a tough day. Seven people confirmed dead after shootings in Halfmoon Bay as suspect and custody. As we've been reporting, we are expecting an update from the sheriff Department in moments. There is

a heavy police presence right now at two different mushroom farms. Our crew was there as a man was taken into custody. You see there who is believed to be the suspect, and we are told he reportedly drove himself to the sheriff's substation. This episode was written by a special guest writer, so the format and flow may differ from our usual storytelling style. We want to send out a special thank you to them for assisting us while our writer was spending

time with her family during a difficult time. The Active Team would like to thank you our listeners for your patients, understanding and loyalty these past four years. We are now back on our bi monthly schedule. Now on with the show. Workplace shootings are tragic and terrifying events that continue to haunt the modern workforce. These incidents shake the foundations of trust and security that employees rely on

in their daily lives. In this episode, we will delve into the complex web of factors that lead to workplace shootings, exploring motives, prevention strategies, and how to spot the warning signs. The first step in stopping workplace violence is understanding the motivations. Workplace shootings are often the culmination of multiple factors, and the motivations behind them are diverse. Some of the key motivations included disgruntlement,

personal crisis, ideological beliefs, and workplace stress. For the disgruntled shooter, a common trigger is workplace exploitation. Employees who feel wronged, mistreated, or overlooked may resort to violence as a way to settle a score. Ideological belief. Shooters are often facing a personal crisis, such as financial difficulties, marital problems, or mental health issues. For these types of shooters, they

may see their workplace as a convenient outlet for their anger and frustration. For the work related stress shooter, employees often face heavy workloads, long hours, unrealistic expectations, and a lack of control over their tasks. Over time, this pressure can lead to the frustration, anxiety, and in extreme cases, can turn into violent outbursts. Today's shooter was an immigrant California farm worker from

China. We're going to get into that in a minute. But this shooter, whom we will call CZ, was both a disgruntled shooter seeking revenge and a work related stress shooter. Revenge is a powerful motivator for disgruntled workers. They may feel that violence is the only way to make their coworkers or superiors understand the pain they have endured. The desire for retaliation can manifest as a desire to harm others and cause suffering. They often have a specific list of

individuals they want to target. It's this disgruntled revenge type shooter who will often resort to violence to regain a sense of power and control that they believe they have lost. They may perceive violence as a way to establish dominance over those they believe have wronged them. On Monday, January twenty third, twenty twenty three, SiZ, who was a sixty six year old Chinese immigrant farm worker,

was on a deadly mission of revenge. His target was two mushroom farms located in Half Moon Bay, an affluent area with a mixture of farms, suburbs, and beach homes about forty five minutes from San Francisco. While this shooting was classified as workplace violence, that doesn't tell the whole story. In fact, this was both workplace violence and a spree killing that spanned over two properties. The first farm targeted was Mountain Mushroom Farm, which was also known

as California Tara Garden. The second shooting scene was Concord Farms. At the time of the shooting, size was an immigrant farm worker who had entered California from his home in China on a work visa. It's often these types of workers who are exploited and preyed upon by unscrupulous agricultural employers. One of the

most egregious forms of exploitation is the payment of subminimum wages. Some unscrupulous farm owners pay their workers well below the state's minimum wage, often in violation of state law and off the books, making it difficult for employees to track their earnings or seek legal remedies. Another issue is substandard housing, which is often faced by many immigrant farm workers. Some employers provide inadequate and overcrowded living conditions,

such as making them live in cargo containers or other substandard accommodations. These living conditions can be unsanitary, unsafe, and lacking in basic amenities. Workers often have little choice but to accept these conditions because of their limited options and financial constraints. The language barrier can make these even more difficult to overcome. On that cold January afternoon, Ciz was wearing a baseball hat, a red shirt with a black fleece vest, and dark blue jeans as he arrived at

California Terra Garden in his maroon colored suv. He was brandishing a Ruger semi automatic pistol when he approached the farm that grew mushrooms, basil, and other herbs. At two twenty two pm. Several nine to one to one calls were placed to Dispatch reporting a mass shooting. When first responders arrived, they

discovered four deceased victims with fatal gunshot wounds. A fifth victim who survived, was airlifted by helicopter to Stanford University Medical Center near Palo Alto with life threatening injuries. As police and emergency crews were arriving at the scene, the gunman fled in his suv and drove to Concord Farms, two miles away. The shooter had previously worked for Concord. Concord Farms was family owned and operated for

almost forty years. According to its website, Concord is quote one of the largest growers and importers of gourmet mushrooms, supporting the growing popularity of mushrooms and various specialty vegetables in restaurants and on dinner tables across the country. Once c Z arrived at Concord, he knew the police would be looking for him, and tried to quickly and efficiently kill those on his targeted list. At Concord, he killed three more victims, who were all deceased by the time police

and first responders arrived. Eggaikam inside to the greens house and he said, oh, you're almost ready done. And then we guys said, yes, we are almost ready. And then he go in and then go outside again. And then when he came again, he showed us person and the head, and then those guys come to the ground, he'd do again and the head. As police realized they had a spree shooter on their hands, Caz drove himself to the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office substation at approximately four forty in

the afternoon. He was immediately taken into custody without incident, and his weapon was found inside of his car. An onlooker described his demeanor as quiet, calm and resigned to his fate. Is it thought solo all. His cell phone was later found on the side of the highway, which seems to indicate he had briefly contemplated fleeing before deciding to turn himself into authorities. Reports from survivors stated that Caz was very intentional with whom he shot. Some of the

victims were his coworkers or supervisors. There were several children present at the shooting scene, but all were left unharmed. It appeared that his first two victims were his former supervisors. Once they were dead, he went looking for specific co workers with whom he had issues with in the past. One witness at Concord Farm said he had been working with one of the victims in a greenhouse when Caz entered. As he entered, one of the victims looked at the

witness and said that Caz used to work here. The shooter took three steps towards the victim and shot him point blank until he was sure his intended target was dead. The terrified witness stated that the shooter looked directly at him and quoted, he just made that gesture to me, as in, don't worry with his hands. As Caz left the greenhouse, the witness ran outside and

hid for what felt like fifteen to twenty minutes. After he saw the shooter drive away, he ran to each of the three victims to try and render aid, but it was too late. Each one of them were dead. Once Caz was arrested. He cooperated immediately, and, using a Mandarin translator,

began confessing. He told officers that when he first arrived at the police substation, he walked in and didn't see anyone in the front lobby, so he returned to his SUV for two hours and waited until an officer spotted him. He had been both a resident and employee of the first shooting location, California Terra Garden Farm. He spoke at length with investigators without an attorney present. He declined an attorney when he was read his rights. Seesi was born

on December thirtieth, nineteen fifty six, in China. He had been living in the United States for the past eleven years and had obtained a green card. He has a forty year old daughter who still lives in China, and he would send money back to her each month. He lived and worked on the farm with his wife, who was also from China and didn't speak English. Investigators discovered that he had legally purchased his handgun in twenty twenty one,

and there were no red flags associated with his gun purchase. He told investigators he complied with the waiting period and had no issues whatsoever obtaining his firearm. He had worked at California Taro Garden for six years as a forklift driver. It appears the cause of his workplace violence was a series of little slights that had built up over time. The most recent issue was a dispute over a

repair build for a piece of machinery. The repair was going to cost one hundred dollars, and his supervisor insisted that the cost of the repair would need to come out of his paycheck. He was livid over this, as he didn't think the cost of repairs or the cause of the breakdown were his responsibility. It was this repair bill that was his final straw. He told investigators

that the forklift became damaged in a crash with a bulldozer. He tried to explain to his boss that the crash wasn't his fault and he wasn't going to pay for it. His boss got angry back and told him if he didn't pay for the repair, he would be fired. Caz told investigators that his treatment had caused him to suffer some kind of a mental illness and he wasn't

in his right mind at the time of the shooting. He also explained that he and his wife and other farm workers were forced to live in deplorable conditions. He alleged that he was living and sleeping in a shipping container and working for just nine dollars per hour. At the time time California's minimum wage was fifteen fifty per hour. He worked full time, often overtime, but was

offered no healthcare or any other kinds of support against Californian labor laws. Investigators learned that in twenty thirteen, the shooter was previously accused of trying to kill his roommate because the roommate didn't have any checks to pay him for a job he had done for the roommate. The roommate alleged that Cazi had snuck into his sleeping quarters and tried to suffocate him with a pillow. The roommate had to fight him off to get him to remove the pillow from his face.

After the incident, the former roommate filed a restraining order against the shooter. It appears that both the roommate and the shooter had worked at a restaurant job, where the shooter had been fired several days after attempting to suffocate his roommate with a pillow. He threatened to kill him with a knife if he didn't help him get his restaurant job back. Cazi told the roommate that next time, he would use a kitchen knife to split his head open when he was

sleeping so he wouldn't be able to fight back. The roommate told investigators that Sizi would often become frustrated with the language barrier at the former workplace. Most workers spoke Spanish and could communicate, which left him feeling left out since he only spoke Mandarin. Now let's discuss the victims. Ye tau Bin was just forty three years old born on April second, nineteen seventy nine. Bing came from China, where he was married to Xiaoxi Meng. He immigrated from China

to the US in twenty sixteen. He first worked in New Jersey as a technician at a mushroom farm, but he later moved to California in twenty twenty two to work at Tara Garden. He was planning a trip back to China in February, which would be the very first time he had been with his family since before the pandemic. He had a four year old daughter and a son who had just been accepted into a university. He was an only son

to parents, but had two older sisters who all resided in China. He was the sole financial support for his parents and especially his father, who had been diagnosed with cancer two years prior to the shooting. He was described by co workers as a hard worker who loved his job. He was the first person at the farm each morning and usually the last one to leave every day. The next two victims are Qui jiang Chang sixty six years old and Xi

Xen Liu, seventy three years old. There isn't much information available on both of them. The next victim was Jing Shilu, who was sixty four years old and married. The employee who died in the greenhouse at Concord Farms was Marciano Martinez Yemenez. He was fifty years old at the time of his death and had lived in Half Moon Bay for twenty five years, working in the

agricultural industry. He was a proud member of the Oahakan community and considered a beloved father figure to manyvolunteered for the Rodecare Clinic in Half Moon Bay for many years to help his community Rodacare is a clinic that provides free medical care to those in need in the agricultural community, knowing that many are undocumented and without

medical insurance. A go Fundme was set up for Marciano to raise funds to send his remains to his home town of Oajaca, Mexico for a traditional burial. He was described as an honorable and hard working man among his friends and co workers. According to the go fundme, he was a son, brother, uncle, and dear friend to many. He loved to dance, and his favorite was a traditional Oahacan dance called the Denza de la Pluma. He

was also a musician and talented accordion player. The next victim was Jose Romero Perez, who had just moved to Half Bay eighteen months earlier. His younger brother, Pedro Romero Perez, was just twenty three years old and had also been shot, but survived. Jose left behind his parents, wife, and four children in Oajaca, Mexico. He had come to a half Moon Bay in search of work to send back to support his family. A GoFundMe was also set up in his name to help defray the cost of sending his body

home to Mexico. The next victim was aijiang Xiang, who was seventy four years old. He was married to Jing Xilu and worked at the farm in the cafeteria. The shooter was arraigned in San Mateo County Superior Court in Redwood City on seven counts of murder and one count of attempted murder, plus enhancements for firearm use. This case included special circumstances since it involved multiple murders,

which makes it el eligible for capital murder. Although there is currently a moratorium on all death row sentences, regardless, the shooter is still eligible to be sentenced to death or life without parole. The shooter was appointed to attorneys who are both death penalty cases qualified. Because of the nature of his case, he was held without bond. He was back in court a few weeks later, on February sixteenth, twenty twenty three. This time he wore an orange

jail jumpsuit and kept his head bowed while he pleaded not guilty. He showed no emotion and spoke through his court appointed Mandarin translator. Through his attorneys, he waived his right to a preliminary hearing, and once again the judge denied his request for a bond. He currently has a preliminary hearing scheduled for December fourth, twenty twenty three, which is expected to last for five days.

An investigation into the labor and workforce practices at both locations where the shootings took place were later opened. In a press briefing, the White House Press Secretary Karine Jean Pierre expressed that the White House had directed federal law enforcement to help local authorities during their investigation. The Governor of California was informed of the shootings while he was visiting victims of another shooting just forty eight hours earlier in Monterey

Park. He described the two events as tragedy upon tragedy. The living conditions of the workers at the California Terra Garden drew attention following reports that many of the employees lived in shipping or storage containers and the site did not follow all permit and code requirements. It was discovered that many of the workers were being paid below California's minimum wage requirements. The company later said it would improve the

housing for workers and families and pay all minimum wage requirements going forward. California Terra Garden was charged with twenty two violations in order to pay one hundred and thirteen thousand, a eight hundred dollars in fines. One of the violations was that they failed to quote immediately notify employees of an active shooter threat and instruct them to seek shelter. The other violations included failure to investigate in employees back

injury and failing to provide sanitary hand washing stations at the toilet facilities. There were several other violations in the report, which can be found online. The Concord Farm was sited with nineteen workplace violations in order to pay fifty one thousand, seven hundred and seventy dollars in fines. Their violations included failure to address previous incidents of workplace violence and develop procedures to correct and prevent this hazard again.

They were also cited for insects and rodents found in the workplace, water leakage in farm worker housing, and failing to have proper precautions around heat exhaustion for employees. The employees were found to be living in terrible work conditions, which included shack and trailers with inadequate heating or plumbing. Many of them had

no running water or electricity. The plight of the immigrant Chinese and Hispanic farm workers in California is often marked by harsh and exploitative conditions, as they face numerous challenges due to their limited language skills, lack of resources, and vulnerability to exploitation by employers. These workers are typically drawn to the California agriculture industry in search of employment opportunities, seeking to provide a better life for themselves and

their families, but they often find themselves in difficult circumstances. The State of California recognizes the challenges faced by immigrant farm workers and has taken several steps to help protect their rights and well being moving forward. The state has implemented labor laws and regulations designed to ensure fair wages, safe working conditions, and access

to basic amenities for all agricultural workers, regardless of their immigration status. California's labour agencies and organizations also provide resources to help educate immigrant workers about their rights and provide avenues for reporting abuse and exploitation. Hopefully, these changes will reduce

the instances of workplace violence. Community organizations and non governmental entities such as labor unions and worker advocacy groups also play a crucial role in supporting immigrant farm workers. They provide legal assistance, education, and advocacy, helping workers understand their rights and seek justice when they are mistreated. In recent years, California has increased its efforts to combat the exploitation of immigrant farm workers through enhanced labor inspections,

outreach programs, and legal protections. This includes measures to address wage theft, unsafe working conditions, and inadequate housing for agricultural workers. California, like many other states, has taken various measures to address and reduce workplace violence and

prevent mass shootings. Some of the key actions and initiatives are aimed at achieving this goal by implementing the workplace violence prevention programs Through California's Division of Occupational Safety and Health Services, also known as cal OSHA, OSHA has established regulations that require employers to develop and implement workplace violence prevention programs. These programs are particularly important in industries where the risk of violence is elevated, such as agriculture,

health care, and social services. Employers are encouraged to assess the potential for violence, develop procedures for responding to threats or acts of violence and provide training to employees on how to respond during a mass shooter event. Many employers in California offer active shooter training to their employees, which includes education, lockdown procedures,

evacuation plans, and how to communicate with law enforcement. California also encourages employees to report concerns about workplace violence to their employers, and laws protect whistleblowers who report unsafe working conditions. Reporting mechanisms are crucial for identifying potential threats and addressing them before they escalate. California has also invested in mental health services programs to provide support to individuals who may be at risk of engaging in violent behavior.

Access to mental health resources can help identify and assist individuals in crisis before they resort to violence. While these measures have been put in place to reduce workplace violence and prevent mass shootings, it's important to note that workplace safety is an ongoing challenge. Employers, employees, law enforcement, and government agencies continue to collaborate and adapt their strategies to address this issue and create safer work environments

in the state. We all have the unique ability to help prevent such a catastrophic event. From happening. If we keep our eyes and ears open and never hesitate to report when something or someone just doesn't seem right. With a delicate balance of mental health reform, education, active shooter training, and common sense gun laws, we may one day realize the dream, the dream that there will be no more active shootings. We pray that love will prevail over

hate. In the meantime, we urge our listeners to stay aware of your surroundings and keep in touch with your loved ones. If you see something, say something, you never know how many lives you'll be saving. Thank you for listening to today's episode of Active Shooter the Podcast. Remember if you see something, say something, there's no telling how many lives you may be saving. A big thank you to Darren Curtis, who composed some of the songs

on our show. You can find him online at www dot Darren Curtis music dot com. Make sure to check us out on social media. You can find us on Facebook at Active Shooter the Podcast and on Twitter at podcast Active. Thank you and be safe.