UPDATE: 8 Dead in Seal Beach Shooting; Long Beach Man Arrested

Eight people were killed and one critically wounded Wednesday afternoon when a heavily armed gunman wearing body armor opened fire at the  in Seal Beach, police said.

Shortly after the shootings, a white male suspect—who had weapons strewn across the floorboard of his white truck and guns strapped to his body—was arrested without incident half a mile from the scene, police and witnesses said.

The alleged gunman was the ex-husband of a salon employee named Michelle, according to the husband of an employee who survived the shooting unharmed after locking herself inside a back room. Another source identified the suspect as Scott DeKraii of Long Beach, who worked in sportfishing.

The shooting spree began around 1:20 p.m. in the 500 block of Pacific Coast Highway, said Los Alamitos police Capt. Bruce McAlpine.

"We're not sure at this time if he shot from the entrance or if people were shot as they ran seeking shelter, but they were shot all over the salon," McAlpine said.

One employee, Kathy McGhee, was working in a back room when the gunfire began, according to her husband, Dave McGhee. A customer grabbed her and locked the door behind them, McGhee said. Moments later, someone tried to open the door from the outside, but didn't get in, he said.

"She [Kathy] called 911 and then me," McGhee said.

Police arrived a minute later, in time to follow a truck believed to be the suspect's.

Inside the salon, authorities found six people dead, including owner Randy Fannin. Three others—two men and a 73-year-old woman—were rushed to a trauma hospital, McAlpine said. One of the wounded was found in a nearby car, although it's unclear if that vicitm was shot in the car or fled there from the salon, police said.

Two of the wounded victims have since died, police said, making this the worst mass killing in Orange County history, surpassing a 1976 shooting in the library of Cal State Fullerton.

Jeannie Nagle, a former Lakewood High School classmate of three of the victims, told K-CAL9 people in the salon laid on the ground and pretended to be dead to escape the gunfire.

Police said the motive was under investigation, but McGhee said the alleged gunman had recently lost a divorce custody battle with a salon employee named Michelle.

Nagle said the alleged shooter had warned his estranged wife he would do something like this. Nagle described him as ex-military and unstable.

The suspect was arrested about a half mile away at Central Avenue and 12th Street. A witness who videotaped the arrest on her cell phone camera told K-CAL9 the suspect cooperated and told officers there were guns in the car and that he couldn’t get down on his knees because of a prosthetic in his leg.

As of 5 p.m., investigators were still combing through the vehicle.

Authorities said they weren't sure how many weapons were used in the shooting.

"Obviously a crime of this magnitude is something that Seal Beach is not familiar with," Bowles said. "This could be one of our greatest tragedies, and it has had a tremendous effect on our small community.”

He added, "On behalf of the Seal Beach Police Department we want to express our condolences to all affected by this tragedy here today. ... I’d like to assure the community of Seal Beach that the Police Department is working very hard, aggressively and thoroughly to investigate the shooting.”

Strangely, the shooting took place not far from a TV taping of CSI: Miami.

The real crime scene quickly drew a huge crowd.

"I was sitting on the beach when I heard sirens so I ran to see what was happening," said Marc Loopesko, who lives down the street from the salon.

About 100 residents, some dressed for the beach and others who raced over from work, stood around the block where news vans mixed with fire trucks. Seal Beach fire engine 44, arriving from three blocks away, was first on the scene to treat victims.

The chaos was compounded by the fact there are at least three salons in the shopping center at PCH and Fifth Street. Several people frantically walked around the roped-off crime scene trying to find out if their loved ones were alive.

Seal Beach resident Gary Takacs watched police flood into the area as he was heading out to an appointment.

“I saw police were swarming in, and I knew something big was happening," he said. "My wife knows the owners very well. Everyone around here knows everyone. We are really a tight community – we are all friends and family, and I know we are going to be hurting. It’s a sleepy little town, and things like this don’t happen -- except it did happen. It just doesn’t seem true."

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People who fear a loved one might have been shot should call Seal Beach police at 562-799-4100, Bowles said. "Our primary mission now is to support these families,'' he told City News Service.

—Patch staff writer Nancy Wride contributed to this report.