A shooting suspect in Atlanta has been sentenced to life in prison

A man who was involved in multiple shooting sprees at spas in Atlanta, Robert Aaron Long, took a plea deal and learned the consequences of his actions. The shooting suspect has pleaded guilty to the fatal shooting of four people, multiple news outlets reported. The capital punishment the prosecutors sought in exchange for his guilty plea was reduced to four consecutive life sentences without parole, plus another 35 years in exchange for his guilty plea. 

Long fatally shot  Daoyou Feng, Xiaojie “Emily” Tan, Paul Michels and Delaina Yaun at the Youngs Asian Massage parlor in Cherokee County on the afternoon of March 16. 

Continuing his assaults on three women at Gold Spa as well as another woman at Aromatherapy Spa. Suncha Kim, Hyun Jung Grant, Soon Chung Park, and Yong Ae Yue are all Asian-American women who died in the mass shooting. 

At the time of his arrest, Long denied allegations that his acts were racially motivated and admitted that massage parlors triggered his sex addiction so he fired his gun there. While pledging guilty to malice murder, felony murder, attempted murder, and aggravated assault, he reiterated these statements, noting that he wanted to punish the people who fed his addiction. His actions were not charged as hate crimes. 

Despite escaping the death penalty in the Cherokee County shootings, the suspect faced a death sentence and was charged with domestic terrorism, murder, felony murder and aggravated assault for the deaths of Suncha Kim, Soon Chung Park, Hyun Jung Grant and Yong Ae Yue, victims of this shooting. 

The next court hearing will take place in Fulton County. District Attorney Fani Willis said she intends to seek his death penalty as well as a hate crime enhancement, but may consider a plea bargain.