Three killed in Boyle Heights shooting
Three people were killed and four wounded in a shooting early Sunday at a warehouse party in Boyle Heights, police said.
Police received a call about 12:30 a.m. from someone requesting help for a friend who had been shot in the 1400 block of South Lorena Street, said Los Angeles Police Officer Luis Garcia. When officers arrived, they discovered three males who had been shot, he said.
A fourth victim was later discovered.
In all, LAPD Det. Frank Carrillo said, three people were killed and four others were taken to a hospital. “Some are stable, some aren’t so stable,” he said.
Two of the victims’ bodies remained in the warehouse Sunday as detectives gathered evidence.
Carrillo said the weapons used in the shooting were semiautomatic. He also noted that an invite for the party had circulated on social media.
Local rapper MoneySign $uede performed at the party earlier in the evening, according to reports. The artist offered condolences in an Instagram post Sunday.
“I pray for all the people who were injured and died last night. My condolences and heart goes out to all the families of this hurt.”
City Councilman Kevin de León, whose district includes Boyle Heights, said Sunday’s shooting is “emblematic of the unrelenting gun violence nationally.”
“The urgency to pass serious gun control legislation and rid our streets of weapons of war is critically overdue,” he said.
Carrillo said he believed the shooting was the deadliest incident in Los Angeles this year involving guns. He said there was an exchange of gunfire.
In January, four people were killed and one person was wounded in an “ambush” shooting at a birthday house party in Inglewood.
Neighbors of the Boyle Heights warehouse said they heard the gunfire.
“The shots woke us up,” said Patty Calzada, who lives two doors down from the warehouse. She said she watched the commotion through her security camera.
Many of the young people fleeing the building after the shots were fired looked underage, she said. “They were yelling and screaming,” Calzada said.
Another resident said his wife woke him up after hearing two sets of gunshots: a burst of 10 shots, and then a minute later, a round of five shots.
Neighbors said there had been previous parties at the warehouse that had drawn the attention of police. In addition, a young girl was hit by a car outside the building a week ago, neighbors said.
Police tape stretched across several blocks around the warehouse on Sunday afternoon. Several young people, many looking distraught, arrived at the crime scene, hoping to find out what happened to their relatives.
Andre Preston said his brother, Brandon Castro, 18, was in the hospital after being shot.
Preston, who spoke to detectives Sunday outside the warehouse, said he knew little about his brother’s condition.
He said he had been told by relatives that his brother had gone to see a rapper perform.
“My little brother happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Preston, 22.