Cristian Rene Medina, 23

Cristian Rene Medina, a 23-year-old Latino, was fatally shot by Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies Wednesday, March 16, in the 6400 block of South Holmes Avenue in the Firestone-Florence neighborhood of Los Angeles, according to Los Angeles County coroner’s records. 

The incident began around 4 a.m. when the sheriff's department received a call about a robbery in progress at Gage Street and Holmes Avenue, an intersection with several businesses in the Firestone-Florence area, The Times reported. 

The caller described the robber as wearing a black hoodie sweatshirt and black shorts, and carrying a black handgun, according to a department news release. 

Two deputies answered the call, but a block south of the reported robbery scene, at Holmes Avenue and 64th Street, the deputies saw a man matching the description of the robber standing by himself next to a pay phone. 

Lt. Eddie Hernandez told The Times that it’s not clear how the man, later identified as Medina, noticed the deputies. But as they drew closer, Hernandez said Medina turned toward the deputies and allegedly “assumed a two-hand shooting stance” as he pointed toward them. 

“What’s being described to us is: He turned in the direction of where the deputies were approaching and when it appears he saw who they were -- of course we don’t know this for sure -- when the deputies were there, he took that stance. Prior to that he was not in that stance,” Hernandez told The Times. 

Both deputies fired multiple times at Medina, who was pronounced dead at the scene at 4:27 a.m. 

Medina did not have a gun, investigators discovered. They traced the robbery call to the phone booth where Medina had been standing, and determined there never was a robbery on Gage and Holmes. 

Hernandez said investigators don’t know if Medina made the false robbery report. 

“It’s suspicious,” he told The Times. “That is where the call originated and he was the only one standing in the area. The only … inference is he was the one who possibly made that call…Right now, we can’t draw any conclusions.”

Investigators found a security camera near the scene that may reveal more details about the shooting, Hernandez said. 

Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff’s Homicide Bureau, which investigates deputy-involved shootings for the department, at (323) 890-5500. Those wishing to remain anonymous should call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477. 

Contact the Homicide Report. Follow @latimeshomicide on Twitter.