Police have a suspect in custody, Orange County Undersheriff Jeff Hallock said during a news conference on Sunday evening.
He is believed to be an Asian man in his 60s who doesn’t live in the area, according to Hallock.
Police do not yet have a motive, Hallock said.
The suspect was detained at the scene after a group of people at the church were able to hog-tie his legs with an extension cord and confiscate at least two handguns from him, Hallock said.
The shooting occurred during a lunch reception honoring a former pastor of a Taiwanese congregation that uses the church, a Presbytery leader said.
“That group of churchgoers displayed what we believe is exceptional heroism in interfering or intervening to stop the suspect,” Hallock said.
About 30-40 people were in attendance at the reception, according to Hallock.
California Governor Gavin Newsom said his office is “working closely with local law enforcement.”
“No one should have to fear going to their place of worship. Our thoughts are with the victims, community, and all those impacted by this tragic event,” Newsom said in a tweet.
The Taiwanese congregation, which became a sister congregation at Geneva Presbyterian Church about five or six years ago, always holds a lunch after their Sunday morning service, Laguna Woods Mayor Pro Tem Cynthia Conners told CNN.
“We’ll see what we can do to meet with the members of the congregation, we’ll bring in someone from the Orange County Human Rights Commission … and try to make sure that the Asian members of our community feel as safe as all the other members of our community, although I would have to say I think we all feel a little less safe today,” Conners said
