The Homicide Report

Previously unidentified victim in Hacienda Heights double stabbing was a teenage boy

Dec. 17, 2015, 6 p.m.

The person found dead in a Hacienda Heights home along with an 84-year-old woman has been identified as a 16-year-old boy, but investigators say they're no closer to identifying those responsible for their grisly deaths

Gavin Bustamante, a 16-year-old white male, was found in a bedroom of a house in the 16000 block of Carriage Place on Oct. 7, according to Los Angeles County coroner's records. He was initially identified by the coroner's office as John Doe No. 248.

The body of June Collins, the 84-year-old owner of the home, was found in another room. Both victims had been stabbed to death and were in advanced stages of decomposition when they were discovered by deputies.

Collins suffered from dementia, said Los Angeles County Sheriff's Lt. John Corina, and her son was in county jail for elder abuse against his mother at the time she and Bustamante died.

Investigators believe that …

Three arrested in shooting that killed East L.A. football player in 2013

By Jeanette Marantos

Dec. 17, 2015, 4:28 p.m.

Three East Los Angeles men were arrested last week in connection with the death of former Garfield High football player Gabriel Soto, 21, who was shot and killed during a party with his friends on March 25, 2013.

Soto's family members made a public plea for information about the killers on Nov. 18, when the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department announced a $20,000 reward for information about the shooter.

No one has claimed the reward, said Sgt. Ken Perry, "but the press conference for the reward and the plea from the family led to clues that resulted in the arrest of these three individuals."

Two men were arrested Dec. 9 on search warrants at their East L.A. homes, Perry said. Jonathon Gonzalez, a 28-year-old Latino, and Roque Solis, a 30-year-old Latino, were arrested on suspicion of murder, attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon, Perry said.

A third man, …

A new look to help readers follow cases

Dec. 16, 2015, 4:46 p.m.

If you're among our frequent readers of The Homicide Report, you might notice that today we've made a few changes to the design and layout of the posts. Like many recent improvements, this one focuses on our mobile readers, who make up a substantial part of our audience. In this update, we have added elements available on the desktop view that readers told us they wanted to be able to access on their phones as well.

The most extensive changes — and the ones you're most likely to notice — occur with what we call the "story stream." That stream is how we keep readers up-to-speed on all the reporting that's been done for each homicide. Previously, this list wasn't included on the mobile view. This update also streamlines the presentation on desktops, simplifying related posts into a list that links to each headline. Here's a recent example.

Also …

Bryan Wilfredo Najarro, 24

By Nicole Santa Cruz

Dec. 17, 2015

Bryan Wilfredo Najarro, a 24-year-old Latino, was fatally stabbed Wednesday, Dec. 16, near Avenue 59 and North Figueroa Street in Highland Park, according to Los Angeles County coroner’s records.

About 2:30 a.m., LAPD patrol officers responded to a call of a stabbing and found Najarro suffering from multiple stab wounds, said LAPD Det. Ryan Watterson.

Najarro was pronounced dead at the scene at 2:38 a.m., according to coroner’s records.

A preliminary description from witnesses indicated that the suspects could be two Latinas in their 30s, who were wearing dark clothing, Watterson said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Watterson at (323) 344-5744. Those who wish to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477.

Contact the Homicide Report. Follow @nicolesantacruz and @latimeshomicide on Twitter.

Carl Alexander Hall, 37

Dec. 30, 2015

Carl Alexander Hall, a 37-year-old black man, was found strangled on Dec. 16, 2015, in the 300 block of West 74th Street in Florence, according to Los Angeles County coroner’s records.

About 10 a.m., LAPD officers responded to a call of an unresponsive man in an alley, police said. Paramedics arrived shortly after and pronounced Hall dead at 10:08 a.m. A subsequent autopsy revealed that he had died from strangulation.

LAPD Det. Chris Barling said Hall was living in transitional home in the area before his death. Police have not yet determined a motive.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Criminal Gang Homicide Division at (323) 786-5113. Those who wish to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477.

Contact the Homicide Report. Follow @jeromercampbell and @latimeshomicide on Twitter.

Man sentenced to 16 years in tattoo artist's death

By Nicole Santa Cruz

Dec. 15, 2015, 5 p.m.

A 32-year-old man was sentenced Monday to 16 years in state prison in the 2014 fatal shooting of a tattoo artist in North Hollywood, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.

Robert Falcon pleaded no contest Nov. 17 to one count of voluntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Christopher Pebley, 40, who was also known as “Trigz.”

Falcon also admitted that he used a firearm in the Oct. 9, 2014, killing, prosecutors said.

Contact the Homicide Report. Follow @nicolesantacruz and @latimeshomicide on Twitter.

Carlos Davis Gregory, 37

Dec. 30, 2015

Carlos Davis Gregory, a 37-year-old Latino male, died Monday, Dec. 14, after being shot in Arlington Heights, according to Los Angeles County coroner's records.

Mharloun Verdejo Saycon, 39

By Jeanette Marantos

March 17, 2016

Mharloun Verdejo Saycon, a 39-year-old Filipino man, was shot and killed by a Long Beach police officer Monday, Dec. 14, 2015, at 2500 Long Beach Boulevard in Long Beach, according to Los Angeles County coroner’s records.

Long Beach officers were called to Looff’s Lite-A-Line arcade at 10:08 p.m. after receiving a report that a man inside was armed with a knife, according to a department news release.

As they were driving to the scene, the officers received an update that the man, later identified as Saycon, was waving the knife and frightening people at the arcade.

When officers arrived, they saw Saycon sitting in a chair “still armed with a knife,” according to the release. Saycon refused to comply with the officers’ orders to drop the knife, even after they used a Taser and baton to try to get him to drop the weapon.

“The less-lethal options were ineffective, and …

Thomas Johnson, 21

By Matt Hamilton and Ruben Vives

Dec. 30, 2015

Thomas Johnson, a 21-year-old black man, was shot and killed Sunday, Dec. 13, at 550 South Flower St. in downtown, according to Los Angeles County coroner’s records.

Shortly before 2:30 a.m., a group of men got into a fight with another group of men, police said. At some point, a man pulled out a gun and fired several rounds in front of a hotel, striking two people.

Johnson ran through the hotel’s ground floor to the back entry, and the gunman ran around the hotel and confronted Johnson. The gunman fired several rounds, hitting Johnson and another man, who returned fire.

The four wounded men were taken to a hospital. Johnson was pronounced dead at 3:02 a.m., according to coroner’s records.

On Dec. 15, police released surveillance video of the suspected gunman.

Police have described the gunman as a black man with black hair, cornrows, brown eyes and a black …

Peter Yu, 28

By Nicole Santa Cruz

Dec. 30, 2015

Peter Yu, a 28-year-old Korean man, was shot and killed Sunday, Dec. 13, in the 3900 block of Wilshire Boulevard in Koreatown, according to Los Angeles County coroner’s records.

Shortly after 9:30 p.m., Yu was inside an SUV in a parking lot behind a strip mall when a man approached and began shooting him, said Lt. John Radtke with the Los Angeles Police Department.

The gunman then ran south on South Gramercy Place to Wilshire Boulevard. Witnesses told police that the man, described as an Asian, was wearing a black bomber-style jacket and a black hat, Radtke said.

Police are trying to determine a motive behind the shooting, Radtke said.

Anyone with information is asked to call LAPD’s West Bureau homicide detectives at (213) 382-9470. Those who wish to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477.

Contact the Homicide Report. Follow @nicolesantacruz and @latimeshomicide on Twitter.

Nicholas Robertson, 28

By Los Angeles Times Staff

Dec. 17, 2015

Nicholas Robertson, a 28-year-old black man, was shot and killed by deputies Saturday, Dec. 12, at 12131 South Long Beach Boulevard in Lynwood, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department homicide investigators.

The incident started about 10:53 a.m. when the department began receiving 911 calls about a black man yelling and shooting a gun into the air near the corner of Alpine Avenue and Palm Avenue, said Lt. Eddie Hernandez.

The man, later identified as Robertson, continued walking north and then east, with reports coming in about him at Carlin Avenue and North Santa Fe Avenue, before two deputies confronted him about two blocks away, at an Arco Station on South Long Beach Boulevard, near Magnolia Avenue.

The deputies gave Robertson “multiple commands to drop his gun,” Hernandez said.

Robertson kept his gun, however, and appeared to walk away from the deputies, waving them off, The Times reported. When Robertson …

Kellie Marie Nolan, 27

Aug. 11, 2016

Kellie Marie Nolan, a 27-year-old white woman, died Dec. 12, 2015, in the 16000 block of South Western Avenue in Gardena, according to Los Angeles County coroner’s records.

About 1 a.m., Nolan and a man checked into a hotel. On a video detectives found at the scene, the coroner's report said, the pair engages in sexual activity involving Nolan being wrapped in tape and cellophane, with tape over her nose.

The man fell asleep while Nolan was still wrapped up and unable to breathe. When he awoke, Nolan was unresponsive. He unwrapped her and called 911 about 5 a.m.

Police and paramedics attempted life-saving measures, but Nolan was pronounced dead at 5:43 a.m., according to coroner’s records.

On Dec. 15 Kevon Ross was charged with murder and three counts of rape. Prosecutors also charged him with 11 counts of rape of three other women between 2007 and 2015. He also …

Michael Francis Williams, 66

Dec. 30, 2015

Michael Francis Williams, a 66-year-old black male, died Saturday, Dec. 12, after sustaining blunt force trauma in Watts, according to Los Angeles County coroner's records.

Boyfriend arrested on suspicion of girlfriend's near-decapitation death

By Jeanette Marantos

Dec. 11, 2015, 6:23 p.m.

Federal marshals working with Mexican authorities on Dec. 9 arrested a transient suspected of killing his girlfriend, Kassandra Ochoa, 21, on Nov. 21 in East Los Angeles.

Antonio Medina, a 28-year-old Latino, was arrested in Mexico's Nayarit state and was left in the custody of Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department homicide investigators on Dec. 10, according to a department news release.

Medina was booked into the sheriff's San Dimas station on suspicion of murder and a no-bail warrant for a probation violation, according to the release.

Witnesses reported that Ochoa was last seen arguing with Medina about 11 p.m. on Nov. 21, as the two were entering a vacant apartment in the 470 block of South Sydney Drive. When the apartment owner went to check on the couple, she saw Ochoa lying on the floor bleeding and a man standing nearby.

The man fled when the landlord called 911.

Los …

Monrovia woman died of strangulation, records show

By Jeanette Marantos

Dec. 11, 2015, 6:15 p.m.

A Monrovia woman found dead in her car on June 16 was killed by strangulation, according to Los Angeles County coroner's records recently made public.

Lajoya McCoy, 31, disappeared from her apartment in the 800 block of West Olive Avenue on June 10. Her badly decomposed body was discovered almost a week later about a mile from her home, in the 200 block of West Cypress Avenue.

Investigators can't say for sure that McCoy was killed in her apartment, said Los Angeles County Sheriff's Lt. Victor Lewandowski.

"There was an event in her apartment," he said, "but we can't tell if she died during the event or later in her car."

McCoy's former boyfriend, the father of their two children, has been charged with murder in connection with her death.

Jose Roberto Turner, 47, was arrested Aug. 27 and pleaded not guilty to murder Sept. 16, according to Ricardo Santiago, …

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