Slain ‘intruder’ not a criminal, simply mistook address, friends say

Friends of a man shot to death inside a Long Beach home say he had mistakenly entered the residence while walking home from a birthday party and was not there to burglarize the property, as police have alleged.

Ryan Anderson, 29, a Long Beach resident, was fatally shot by a homeowner in the 2800 block of East 3rd Street about 3 a.m. Sunday after his friends said he tried to make it home from a long night of partying.

Anderson was celebrating a friend’s birthday in the neighborhood and walking home when he went into somebody else’s house, his friend Amanda Farhall told KCBS-TV Channel 2.

“I just don’t believe that he was a burglar ‘cause he’s just not that kind of guy,” Farhall said. “He was loved by everybody.”

Though there’s been a rash of break-ins in the area recently, police told residents Sunday that they didn’t believe Anderson was tied to any of them.

Neighbor Dina Malonas told CBS that she heard three gunshots and then a homeowner screaming for help about 2:45 a.m.

The homeowner who shot Anderson called police and reported shooting a burglar, said Sgt. Megan Zabel, a Long Beach police spokeswoman.

Paramedics declared Anderson dead at the scene, Zabel added.

Homicide investigators have spoken to the two adult residents of the home, and there is “no indication of intent” on their part, she said.

Long Beach police have not released any information about the residents, the gun used or whether the firearm was legally purchased.

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FOR THE RECORD
Aug. 11, 5:19 p.m.: An earlier version of this post said police didn’t know whether the shooter had a license for the weapon. No license is needed to own a gun in California.
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In July, a Long Beach resident shot a woman, Andrea Miller, who broke into his home with a man. Miller’s accomplice, Gus Adams, was charged with murder in connection with her death.

According to the Homicide Report, a Los Angeles Times database of homicides in L.A. County, there were two other slayings in the last 12 months within a mile of Sunday’s incident.

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