Local sheriff's office suggests Atlanta area spa shootings may not have been racially motivated

Captain Jay Baker, of the Cherokee County Sheriff&#039;s Office

(Image credit: Megan Varner/Getty Images)

last updated 17 March 2021

Robert Aaron Long, the 21-year-old Georgia man suspected of killing eight people in three separate shootings at spas in the greater Atlanta area Tuesday, acknowledged carrying out the murders Wednesday, telling authorities he was trying to eliminate temptation for an apparent sex addiction. Most of the victims were Asian women, but "Long told investigators the crimes were not racially motivated," the Cherokee County Sheriff's office said.

Law enforcement has been clear that it's still early in the investigation, and investigators have not settled on a motive, which is why some observers were perplexed by the decision to publicly emphasize Long's version of the story, while also appearing to express empathy for him.

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.

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