Metro Atlanta Spa Shooter Pleads Guilty To 4 Murders

WOODSTOCK, GA — The Cherokee County man who was charged in the deadly massage parlor shootings in March has entered a guilty plea, hoping to avoid the death sentence.

Two grand juries in Fulton and Cherokee counties indicted Robert Aaron Long, 22, of Woodstock, in May after the shootings at metro Atlanta massage parlors that killed eight on March 16.

Long was charged in connection with the shooting at Young's Asian Massage in Acworth, and at the Aroma Therapy Spa and the Gold Spa in Atlanta.

On Tuesday, Long pleaded guilty in Cherokee County to the first four deaths. He was sentenced to four-consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole, plus 35.

Long was represented at the plea hearing by attorneys J. Daran Burns and Zachary Smith.

“It has been Mr. Long’s desire to accept responsibility for his actions on March 16 from the time
that he interviewed with police after his arrest," Smith said in a news release. "The Cherokee County District Attorney Shannon Wallace worked with us to negotiate this case to achieve today’s result bringing finality in Cherokee County. It is our hope that the Fulton County District Attorney follows D.A. Wallace’s example and agrees to a similar resolution in that county."

Cherokee County District Attorney Shannon Wallace said on Tuesday that in March, Long went to the spa business near Woodstock and was "shooting anyone and everyone he saw," the Associated Press reported.

She did corroborate an earlier motive of a sex addiction rather than targeting Asians or women.

"Your honor, in discussing this case with Mr. Burns, the defense’s position is that this was not any type of hate crime,"Wallace said on Tuesday.

Editor's note: An earlier version of this article misquoted Wallace's statement. It has been updated to reflect her direct quote. We apologize for the error.

Long told investigators in March that the crimes were not racially motivated, but that he "blames the massage parlors for providing an outlet for his addiction to sex."

"He was fed up, at the end of his rope," Cherokee County Sheriff's Capt. Jay Baker said at a news conference in March. "Yesterday was a really bad day for him, and that's what he did."

After that comment was made, social media and several news outlets debated if his comment was too flippant and downplayed the severity of the mass shootings.

Cherokee Sheriff Frank Reynolds said later that, "in as much as his words were taken or construed as insensitive or inappropriate, they were not intended to disrespect any of the victims, the gravity of this tragedy, or express empathy or sympathy for the suspect."

Wallace said Cherokee County was considering seeking the death penalty if Long did not plead guilty, the AP reported. She said he did sign the plea deal admitting to several charges in that county, including malice murder, felony murder, criminal attempt to commit murder, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, possession of a gun during the commission of a crime and criminal damage to property.

He will have to wait for his conviction in Fulton County for the other four deaths in Atlanta, which could earn him the death penalty. There, he faces charges of domestic terrorism with a hate crime enhancement in addition to murder, the AP reported.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis filed notice in May that she will be seeking hate crime charges and the death penalty against Long. Long is scheduled to appear in Fulton County next month on 19 charges, including murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and domestic terrorism.

A Fulton County grand jury indicted Long on May 11 in the killings of Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; and Yong Ae Yue, 63, all of whom were shot at the Gold Spa or Aroma Therapy Spa in Atlanta.

The AP reported that the online records of the indictment charges Long with four counts of murder, four counts of felony murder, five counts of assault with a deadly weapon, four counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and one count of domestic terrorism.

Long also is accused of fatally shooting Xiaojie "Emily" Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; Delaina Yaun, 33; and Paul Michels, 54, at Young's Asian Massage in Cherokee County.

A Cherokee County grand jury indicted Long on four counts of malice murder, four counts felony murder, criminal attempt to commit murder, 11 counts aggravated assault, aggravated battery, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and criminal damage to property in the first degree.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

For more on the Atlanta and Acworth Massage Spa shootings:

• Plea Deal Near For Metro Atlanta Massage Parlor Shooting Suspect
• Death Penalty Sought For Metro Atlanta Massage Parlor Shooter
• Massage Parlor Investigation Continues Despite Confession: Police
• Atlanta Spa Murders: Experts Discuss Sex Addiction
• Atlanta Spa Killings Elicit Grief, Resolve from AAPI Legislators
• Metro Atlanta Massage Parlor Shootings: 5 Things To Know
• 8 Killed In 3 Massage Parlor Shootings, 1 Arrested: Police
• Atlanta Massage Parlor Shootings 9-1-1 Calls Released
• Spa Shootings A Platform For Biden To Deliver On Unity Promise
• 'Bad Day' Comment After Spa Shootings Brings Criticism Of Officer