Spa shooting suspect Robert Long pleads not guilty in killing of four

Plea follows sentencing to four counts of life imprisonment after day of shooting

The 22-year-old who went on a shooting spree in Atlanta earlier this year has pleaded not guilty to killing four women who were fatally wounded that day.

Robert Aaron Long, who has already been sentenced to life in prison for pleading guilty to killing four others on 16 March, delivered a not guilty plea in court on Tuesday.

He appeared briefly before a court in Fulton County, Georgia, where the district attorney is seeking the death penalty for the alleged killing of Suncha Kim, 69; Soon Chung Park, 74; Hyun Jung Grant, 51; and Yong Ae Yue, 63.

Long has already been sentenced to four counts of life imprisonment for shooting Paul Michels, 54; Xiaojie "Emily" Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; and Delaina Yaun, 33, in Cherokee County.

The shooting incidents were at three spas in the Atlanta area, and six of the eight victims were Asian-American women, which fuelled concerns earlier this year about rising hate crimes.

Long, after shooting five people at Youngs Asian Massage in Cherokee County, drove south to Atlanta and shot three women at Gold Spa and another across the street at Aromatherapy Spa, police said after the attack.

He was arrest not long after, on the highway. Police believed he was headed for Florida to carry out more shootings.

Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney, said last month hat she thought Long was motivated by both racial and gender bias.

Although Georgia has no stand-alone law for hate crime, there are additional penalties for hate crimes and a jury can determine whether or not a crime was motivated by bias after an initial conviction.

Ms Willis is seeking both the death penalty and the additional penalties connected to Georgia’s hate crime law.

Shannon Wallace, the district attorney in Cherokee County, meanwhile found no evidence of racial bias in July but said if the case had gone to trial, the death penalty would have also been sought against Long.

He told police at that time that he was ashamed by a sexual addition and blamed spas that were frequented by sex workers, as ABC News reported.

A third hearing in the Fulton County court has been set for 23 November.

Additional reporting by The Associated Press.