A security guard was shot six times Wednesday outside a Jack in the Box restaurant in Carson when gunmen drove by and sprayed bullets at him.
Although the noontime gunfire at 223rd and Main streets occurred across the street from Carson High School, it did not involve students and was unrelated to the campus, Los Angeles Unified police Sgt. Ken Kimbrough said.
“It just happened to be across the street,” Kimbrough said. “The high school was not involved at all.”
Administrators, however, kept students locked inside their classrooms until sheriff’s deputies sorted out what had happened.
Deputies suspect that two men later arrested in Long Beach were targeting another man standing near the guard, who was an innocent victim, sheriff’s Lt. Denise Oglesby said.
Despite his wounds, the 26-year-old security guard was expected to survive. The bullets hit the lower portion of his body, including a hip and his legs, Oglesby said.
He underwent treatment at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.
Workers at nearby businesses said they heard four to six shots ring out.
“I’m not expecting it since it’s broad daylight,” said Cynthia Ringor, who was working at a video store.
Deputies said the guard was talking with some people in the parking lot when the gunmen drove through. They possibly were aiming for a man standing near him, but missed.
No one besides the guard was hit.
“It was a blessing your family and my family weren’t going in at that particular time,” said a man washing his clothes at a laundry in the center. “The girls inside were ducking for cover like it was an HBO movie.”
Witnesses took down part of the fleeing car’s license plate number. An undercover detective spotted the vehicle later and pulled it over near Del Amo Boulevard and the Long Beach (710) Freeway.
The gun believed used in the crime was recovered, deputies said.
The suspects – a boy who will turn 18 on Friday and an adult – underwent questioning at the Carson sheriff’s station Wednesday afternoon. Their names were not released.
Why the men opened fire remained unclear, but Oglesby said the crime did not involve gang activity.
The shooting angered the man in the laundry, who suggested California enforce the death penalty more frequently like Texas and Alabama.
“We’re going to have to put a stop to this,” he said. “Innocent people don’t have to put up with this.”
Although the noontime gunfire at 223rd and Main streets occurred across the street from Carson High School, it did not involve students and was unrelated to the campus, Los Angeles Unified police Sgt. Ken Kimbrough said.
“It just happened to be across the street,” Kimbrough said. “The high school was not involved at all.”
Administrators, however, kept students locked inside their classrooms until sheriff’s deputies sorted out what had happened.
Deputies suspect that two men later arrested in Long Beach were targeting another man standing near the guard, who was an innocent victim, sheriff’s Lt. Denise Oglesby said.
Despite his wounds, the 26-year-old security guard was expected to survive. The bullets hit the lower portion of his body, including a hip and his legs, Oglesby said.
He underwent treatment at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.
Workers at nearby businesses said they heard four to six shots ring out.
“I’m not expecting it since it’s broad daylight,” said Cynthia Ringor, who was working at a video store.
Deputies said the guard was talking with some people in the parking lot when the gunmen drove through. They possibly were aiming for a man standing near him, but missed.
No one besides the guard was hit.
“It was a blessing your family and my family weren’t going in at that particular time,” said a man washing his clothes at a laundry in the center. “The girls inside were ducking for cover like it was an HBO movie.”
Witnesses took down part of the fleeing car’s license plate number. An undercover detective spotted the vehicle later and pulled it over near Del Amo Boulevard and the Long Beach (710) Freeway.
The gun believed used in the crime was recovered, deputies said.
The suspects – a boy who will turn 18 on Friday and an adult – underwent questioning at the Carson sheriff’s station Wednesday afternoon. Their names were not released.
Why the men opened fire remained unclear, but Oglesby said the crime did not involve gang activity.
The shooting angered the man in the laundry, who suggested California enforce the death penalty more frequently like Texas and Alabama.
“We’re going to have to put a stop to this,” he said. “Innocent people don’t have to put up with this.”
