Chunli Zhao and the 2023 Half Moon Bay Farm Massacre
Overview
On January 23, 2023, seven people were killed and another man was seriously wounded during shootings at two mushroom farms near Half Moon Bay, California. Prosecutors accused 66-year-old farmworker Chunli Zhao of carrying out the attacks against current and former coworkers. The violence occurred at California Terra Garden, formerly known as Mountain Mushroom Farm, and at nearby Concord Farms.
The shootings were investigated as an act of workplace violence. Authorities alleged that Zhao first attacked workers at California Terra Garden before driving approximately two miles to Concord Farms and continuing the shooting. Four people were killed at the first property, while three others were killed at the second. Pedro Felix Romero Perez survived after suffering multiple gunshot wounds.
Chunli Zhao
Chunli Zhao was a Chinese immigrant who had lived in the United States for more than a decade. At the time of the massacre, he worked and lived at California Terra Garden. He had previously been employed at Concord Farms, where several of the victims worked.
Investigators described Zhao as familiar with both crime scenes and with the people he targeted. Prosecutors alleged that the attack followed growing workplace resentment and a dispute involving a $100 repair bill. According to information attributed to investigators, a supervisor had ordered Zhao to pay for damage to a forklift after it collided with another piece of farm equipment. Zhao reportedly believed the collision was not his fault.
Zhao later complained that he had been bullied, mistreated and required to work long hours. These claims were presented as grievances he expressed after the shooting and did not justify or excuse the killings. Authorities said the evidence indicated that Zhao deliberately armed himself and moved between two separate workplaces while attacking coworkers.
The Shooting at California Terra Garden
The violence began during the afternoon of Monday, January 23, 2023, at California Terra Garden, a mushroom-growing operation located off Highway 92 near Half Moon Bay. Emergency personnel were alerted to the shooting at approximately 2:22 p.m.
Witnesses reported seeing Zhao carrying a handgun and confronting workers on the property. He allegedly fired at employees in work areas and near the makeshift residences where some farmworkers lived. Four people were killed at the farm.
Brothers Jose Romero Perez and Pedro Felix Romero Perez were reportedly inside the shipping container that served as their residence when Zhao entered and opened fire. Jose was killed. Pedro was struck by several bullets but survived. He was transported by helicopter to Stanford University Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.
Other witnesses escaped or remained hidden as the shooting unfolded. Several workers and family members, including children, were living on the property. The presence of families at the farm increased the potential number of casualties, although the children were not physically injured.
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