Homicide Investigation – Devonshire Division

LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT
PRESS RELEASE
Saturday, October 28, 2000

"Homicide Investigation"

Panorama City – On October 28, 2000, at 11:26 AM, Devonshire Area patrol officers responded to a radio call regarding an Assault with a Deadly Weapon (ADW) with shots fired, in the 9200 block of Wakefield Avenue, in Panorama City. Upon arrival, the officers saw a male Hispanic victim of a gunshot wound, lying inside a vehicle that was stopped in the middle of the roadway. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics responded to the location and transported the victim to a local hospital. The victim failed to respond to treatment and, at 1:30 PM was pronounced dead from a gunshot wound to the upper body.

The preliminary investigation revealed the victim was in the company of family members and was preparing to enter his parked vehicle, when they were confronted by two armed suspects. The victim and his family members were ordered into their vehicle by the suspects, who accompanied them. While inside the vehicle one of the suspects shot the victim in the upper body. A third suspect remained outside of the vehicle throughout the incident. Following the shooting, the suspects were last seen running from the scene, northbound on Wakefield Avenue, toward Tupper Street.

The motive for the attack has not been determined at this time, however, robbery remains a strong possibility. The suspects are described as male, Hispanics.

The victim has been identified as Juan Perez, twenty-three years old, and a resident of Los Angeles.

Devonshire Homicide Detectives are conducting the investigation. Anyone with information that may assist in this investigation is urged to contact the Devonshire Operations Support Division, 818-756-8291.

This Press Release was prepared by Officer Eduardo Funes, Media Relation Section, 213-485-3586.

For Release 5:00 pm PDT
October 28, 2000