*Updated
Police are investigating the shooting death of 29-year-old Emmanuel Vargas whose body was found Thursday afternoon in Boyle Heights.
At about 3:20 p.m. police responded to a radio call and arrived at the 400 block of south Boyle Avenue, said officer Rosario Herrera.
At the scene, police found Vargas lying on the roadway with multiple gunshot wounds, according to an LAPD press release.
Earlier reports by police said Vargas was shot in his car, but new information released Friday evening states homicide detectives believe Vargas and his friend were in front of his apartment building waiting for another person when the suspect, armed with a handgun, walked towards Vargas and opened fire striking him multiple times.
“The victim was pronounced dead at the scene and it looks like this incident is gang related,” said Herrera. “We have a possible suspect, a male Hispanic, but that’s all we have for the suspect’s description.”
Distraught neighbors and family members surrounded the scene closed by homicide detectives for several hours. Police say the suspect is outstanding. No further details were immediately available.
Last week, Boyle Heights Beat reported a story on a recent string of murders in the area. As one reader points out, Thursday’s homicide was in the same vicinity as the last three and all occurred within the last two months. However, detectives say those killings were unrelated.
Anyone with information is asked to call Hollenbeck Homicide Detectives Kirkland or Garcia at (323) 342-8953 or (323) 342-8996.
*A previously published version of this story reported that the victim’s body was found inside his car, the earliest information provided by police.
