Police Say Cook Killed Waitress, Wounded Chef : Slaying: Longtime employee of a Little Tokyo eatery was reportedly angry over treatment on the job.

Police were searching Wednesday for a longtime employee of an upscale Little Tokyo eatery who allegedly opened fire in the restaurant’s kitchen, leaving a waitress dead and a chef wounded.

Maximilliano Lopez, 49, a cook at the Tokyo Kaikan restaurant, had just reported to work at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday when he allegedly walked into the kitchen, drew a semiautomatic pistol and began shooting, according to Police Detective Rick Lane. He then allegedly fled in a car.

Waitress Shoko Murayama, 47, and chef Kvnikav Oda, 25, were taken to County-USC Medical Center, where Murayama died. Oda was in stable condition Wednesday afternoon, according to hospital officials.

Several employees identified Lopez as the man who fired the shots, police said. He had worked at the popular downtown restaurant for 12 years, according to Lane, and was reportedly angry over his treatment by employers and co-workers.

“We know that he was a disgruntled employee,” Lane said. “But we don’t know if he had an intended victim or not.”

The shootings occurred only two hours after a similar incident at a Costa Mesa State Hospital, where an employee fatally shot one of his supervisors and wounded two others. Police said it was a mere coincidence that such similar crimes occurred in such close succession.

“This is bizarre for the downtown area,” Lane said. “It’s been years since I recall having a homicide of this nature.”

Lopez, who lives in South-Central Los Angeles with his family, had no history of disciplinary problems on the job, according to Lane. But, Lane said, the man told his family that he was being mistreated at the restaurant, one of the oldest in Little Tokyo.

The restaurant was closed Wednesday and its management could not be reached for comment. But a bookkeeper who has been employed by Tokyo Kaikan for five years said the shootings had left him in shock.

“He worked here for years,” said Gomi Yoshitomo, who did not know Lopez personally. “For a guy we just hired it’s conceivable, or if we had fired an employee. But (Lopez) had been here, and for him to all of a sudden start shooting, it’s unbelievable.”

The restaurant will remain closed through today, according to a sign hung on its front door.

“Who knows if he might come back,” Yoshitomo said. “We can’t take the risk.”