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8 people dead in shootings at Atlanta massage parlors

Eight people were killed and another person was wounded in a shooting spree Tuesday targeting massage parlors in the Atlanta area.

The shooting first began at Young’s Asian Massage in Acworth, a northwest suburb of Atlanta. Four people were killed in that attack, which took place at roughly 5 p.m., according to the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office.

Atlanta police later responded at 5:47 p.m. to a robbery at a massage parlor in the northeastern part of the city, where three women were found dead. Upon arriving at the scene, police received word of shots being fired at a spa across the street, where authorities found another woman dead.

Jay Baker of the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office confirmed in an email to several media outlets that Robert Aaron Long was arrested in Crisp County later Tuesday. Authorities had released images of Long outside one of the massage parlors asking the public for help identifying him.

“Our entire family is praying for the victims of these horrific acts of violence,” Gov. Brian Kemp (R) tweeted Tuesday night.

Baker said Long is suspected of being behind all three shootings.

“Many have asked whether these shootings are related to Cherokee County’s shootings. Video footage from our Video Integration Center places the Cherokee County suspect’s vehicle in the area, around the time of our Piedmont Road shootings. That, along with video evidence viewed by investigators, suggests it is extremely likely our suspect is the same as Cherokee County’s, who is in custody,” added. John Chafee, an Atlanta Police Department spokesman, in an email to The Hill on Tuesday night.”

Updated: 11:30 p.m.