Eight months after a tragic shooting at a house party on Oct. 29, 2019 in the 2700 block of East 7th Street of the Rose Park neighborhood, the Long Beach Police Department has released new photos and video of three suspect vehicles who are believed to be involved in the shootings which left three men dead and nine others injured.
The three men who died at the scene were Maurice Poe Jr., 25, of Long Beach; Melvin Williams II, 35, of Gardena; and Ricardo Torres, 28, of Inglewood.
There were also seven women and two men were wounded, some of who had life-threatening injuries.
Over the past several months, detectives assigned to the Homicide Detail have been actively following up on leads. Through their investigation, they have identified three possible suspect vehicles. Detectives believe the suspects responsible for this shooting traveled from North Long Beach before making their way to the shooting location.
The vehicles are described as follows:
Vehicle #1: White, Toyota 4Runner with grey trim, late 1990s.
Vehicle #2: Silver, Chrysler PT Cruiser, early 2000’s.
Vehicle #3: White, Toyota Rav4, late 1990-2000’s.
Although their investigation is not complete, and they continue to review video, detectives are releasing three videos in hopes that anyone with information regarding the vehicles or the drivers will come forward.
Video #1: Shows all three vehicles traveling eastbound near the 900 block of 7th Street
Video #2: Shows all three vehicles traveling southbound near the 5400 block of Orange Avenue
Video #3: Shows all three vehicles at the 2700 block of 7th Street, which is where the shooting occurred
Video #4: Shows all three vehicles at the 3000 block of Orange Avenue
Detectives continue to consider all possibilities as to the motive behind this senseless crime. Based on suspect statements heard at the scene and through additional investigation, they believe there is gang involvement amongst the suspects.
In regards to the 12 victims who were shot, LBPD stated, “there was no gang affiliation with any of the victims that were shot.”
When asked by the Signal Tribune if it was known if the shooters had any connections to any of the attendees of the party or to the Hou family who lived in the residence where the shooting occurred, LBPD Chief Luna said, “those are still pieces of this complex puzzle I keep on referring to that we’re still trying to put together.”
“That’s why again, we’re hoping that the public comes forward to bring justice to the victims and their families and the horrible events that they experienced and hopefully we can tie all those things together,” Luna continued.
The public’s help is still needed to identify the suspects and vehicle license plates. Detectives are hopeful additional witnesses will come forward and provide additional evidence as the investigation continues.
No exact number of suspects was stated but LBPD said they believed there were multiple occupants within the three vehicles involved.
With contribution from a private donor, the City of Long Beach, and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, is now offering a combined $40,000 in reward money for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) involved in this murder.
Anyone who may have information regarding this incident is urged to immediately contact the Long Beach Police Department Homicide Detail Detectives Mark Mattia or Donald Collier at (562) 570-7244. Anyone wishing to remain anonymous may call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or text TIPLA plus your tip to 274637 (CRIMES), or visit www.lacrimestoppers.org.
