Two Asian American women have been killed in recent weeks during suspected robberies at massage parlors in Albuquerque, putting the city’s Asian community on edge.
“There is something going on and we don’t know what’s happening, but it’s terrifying,” Kristelle Siarza, a volunteer at the Asian Business Collaborative, told the Albuquerque Journal. “These strings of little robberies are becoming such a big gateway for where we are now.”
Authorities are still working to determine whether the robberies intentionally targeted Asian American businesses. KRQE Albuquerque reported that officers were sent to the Canna Spa Massage after receiving a report of a possible robbery on Tuesday night. When they arrived, police found an employee, a woman of Chinese descent, had been killed.
A person of interest was spotted in surveillance footage, which showed a man wearing a black hat driving a black pickup truck. He was carrying a briefcase and a gun could be seen in his waistband, according to the Albuquerque Journal.