Police searched for suspects Sunday in a shooting that killed three men and injured four during a brawl at a popular Los Angeles-area bowling alley and karaoke bar. Cell phone video aired by KNBC-TV showed groups of people throwing punches as a crowd gathered late Friday at Gable House Bowl in the coastal city of Torrance. Gunshots suddenly rang out and onlookers screamed and ran for their lives.
There were no arrests. Police Sgt. Ronald Harris said Sunday that investigators are trying to determine if there may be more than one suspect. “We just don’t know at this point,” he said. “That’s one of the many questions detectives are looking at.” Friends and family members of the victims held a candlelight vigil Saturday night in the parking lot of the bowling alley in southern Los Angeles County. A memorial with photos and flowers was also set up at the site.
Officers responding to panicked 911 calls found seven people with gunshot wounds. Three men were pronounced dead at the scene and two were taken to a hospital, Harris said. Two other men were struck by gunfire but “opted to seek their own medical attention.”
Authorities have not identified the victims or suspects or released details about what led to the shooting. Witnesses said it stemmed from a fight between two large groups. Dwayne Edwards, 60, of Los Angeles, said he received a call from his nephew that his 28-year-old son, Astin Edwards, was one of those killed. His nephew told him his son was attempting to break up a fight when a gunman “just started unloading.” “I’m thinking this is a dream and I’ll wake up,” Edwards told the Orange County Register. “He was a good kid. I don’t understand it.”
A grieving mother told KABC-7 her 28-year-old son, Robert Meekins, died while trying to break up the fight. She said Meekins and Astin Edwards were close. “They were friends, so I know he probably jumped in and helped Astin and whoever he was with … but I don’t think my son deserves to die,” Anglean Hubbard said. The third victim was 20-year-old Michael Radford, his sister Latrice Dumas told the Torrance Daily Breeze newspaper. “He was happy. He was always a protector,” Dumas said. “That’s how he got into this, he was trying to protect others.”
Wes Hamad, a 29-year-old Torrance resident, said he was at the bowling alley with his 13-year-old niece and cousin when he saw a “huge fight” break out. Hamad said the brawl, which lasted about five minutes, blocked the entrance and spiraled into “complete chaos.” “I grabbed my niece and started running toward the far end of the bowling alley,” he said. “As we were running, we heard 15 shots.”Q
By Associated Press
