Four people were killed and six others were injured Wednesday evening in a shooting at a famed biker bar in Orange County, and the gunman was among the dead.
The shooting occurred at about 7:30 p.m. at Cook’s Corner in the 19100 block of Santiago Canyon Road. There was little official information, but the Orange County Sheriff’s Department confirmed that the gunman was one of four people confirmed dead at the scene.
Of the six other people injured, five of them had gunshot wounds. The nature of the sixth person’s injuries was unknown. The conditions of the injured were not immediately available.
According to the sheriff’s department, an officer or deputy was involved in a shooting at the scene. KCAL9 reported earlier that the gunman may have been shot by a sheriff’s deputy, but the sheriff’s department did not immediately confirm that report.
Sheriff’s officials noted that no deputies were injured.
Video from the scene clearly showed multiple bodies covered with sheets outside the bar.
Citing an unnamed law enforcement source, the gunman was a retired Southern California law enforcement officer who opened fire as a result of a domestic disturbance with his wife at the bar, and the wife was one of the dead victims.
Sheriff’s deputies and multiple paramedics swarmed to the scene, and all streets in the vicinity were shut down.
Cook’s Corner is a well known bar and biker hangout. The building is believed to date back to the late 1800s, although it did not begin operating as a restaurant until the 1920s. The restaurant bills itself as “one of the most famous biker bars in Southern California.”
On Wednesday night, the bar/restaurant was hosting an $8 spaghetti dinner special, along with a live band named M Street that was scheduled to begin playing at 6:30 p.m. Around 6 p.m., the band posted a short video on its Instagram page showing the stage being set up, with the ominous caption, “Cook’s Corner before the onslaught!”
State Sen. Dave Min, D-Irvine, quickly issued a statement saying he was “heartbroken” by the shooting in his area.
“Our district is one of the safest areas in the country and yet we too are repeatedly afflicted with the scourge of mass shootings,” Min said. “An office park in Orange, a church in Laguna Woods, a bar in Trabuco Canyon. There is no place in America that is safe from the scourge of gun violence. There is no community not affected. Me heart breaks for the families and loved ones of the victims. We cannot rest until we end gun violence in this country.”