An investigation is underway after a girl was shot and killed at a home in Arcadia and a man shot himself in Pasadena on Thursday.
Officers responded to a disturbance at an apartment complex in the 800 block of West Huntington Drive in Arcadia around 11 a.m., according to the Arcadia Police Department. Police say a caller reported that a man inside the home fired a gun.
When officers arrived, they found a girl with a gunshot wound who died at the scene, police said. Details about her identity, including her age, were not immediately available.
Investigators say the suspect, identified as 20-year-old Paul Anthony Cruz Jr., forced his way into the home and left before police arrived. Cruz and the victim were believed to have been dating, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
About an hour later, officers with the Pasadena Police Department found Cruz near the corner of Fillmore Street and South Arroyo Parkway in Pasadena. Authorities say he shot himself before officers could contact him. He was taken to the hospital, where he remains in critical condition, the LASD said.
“They tried to arrest him. They tried to get his attention, and before they reached out to him, he took a gun out and shot himself,” said Edgar Perez, who witnessed the incident.
Video from the scene in Arcadia showed police tape around the apartment complex. Neighbors say they heard arguing inside the complex before gunfire.
“We heard a woman screaming, and we thought like, ‘Oh, are the neighbors just fighting?’ And then we heard the helicopters. We heard the cops. We came outside, and we saw the windows that were like blown out and shattered,” neighbor Daisy Valdez said.
The investigation is ongoing.
This is a developing story that will be updated as more information arrives.
