Street shooting claims another child -- this time in Echo Park

Anthony E. Escobar was fatally gunned down Thursday night by suspected gang members after the 13-year-old crossed his Echo Park street to get lemons from a neighbor’s tree.

When his adult cousin found his nearly lifeless body lying in the driveway, he had two lemons in his hands.

Four seeds from those lemons were safely secured by his cousin, Johnny Aguilar, on Friday as he vowed to grow another tree to commemorate the boy known as “Chucho,” whose zeal for life was recalled by his family, coach and friends.

Anthony’s slaying Thursday about 8 p.m in the 800 block of North Bonnie Brae Avenue near Sunset Boulevard is the fourth incident in the last two weeks in which a Los Angeles child has been killed or wounded by alleged gang members.

Investigators searching Friday for Anthony’s killers were focusing on gang members from a rival territory who they believe drove into the area to find an unsuspecting target, police said.

Aguilar, 43, who lives next door to Anthony, said he had gone inside to make a sandwich while his cousin went to get lemons. Then he heard a few shots and darted outside but saw nothing. Anthony’s mother, however, became anxious when she heard the shots.

Aguilar, who helped raise the boy, went back outside and found Anthony in the driveway beside a car. There was no sign of blood, but there were gunshot wounds to the back of Anthony’s head and back, Aguilar said.

The boy had managed to stagger to the driveway but could not make it to the home where he lived with his mother, three sisters and a brother.

“It is devastating. He didn’t deserve this,” said Cynthia Magallon, 29, who coached Anthony at El Centro del Pueblo recreation center. She recalled his enjoyment of trips to the county fair, ball games and his love of boxing. “He had a big smile that just won everybody over.”

Initially, police statements said Anthony had a gang symbol on his hand. But investigators later said the child was not a gang member but did have people in his circle who associate with an Echo Park gang.

His family insisted he was not involved in gangs. “I promised his mom I’d keep him out of gangs,” Aguilar said.

Henry Escobar, 15, a friend who used to live near Anthony but moved away because of gang activity, said he assumed the worst when he heard about the shooting on TV late Thursday. “I had a bad feeling,” he said. He recalled Anthony, who attended Virgil Middle School, as a great kid but one who had begun associating with gang members.

Anthony’s slaying comes at a time when general crime continues to decline in the city, but homicides have risen 27% compared with this time last year.

On Friday, a suspected Latino gang member and his associate were charged with the attempted murder of 6-year-old Lavarea Elvy, who was shot in the head Tuesday while riding in a family car in the Harbor Gateway area. He remained on life support Friday.

Prosecutors charged alleged East Side Torrance gang member Ernesto Murillo, 25, of Torrance, and Ismael Torres, 26, of Wilmington, with nine felonies, including multiple counts of attempted murder. They could face 60 years to life in prison if convicted.

Another gang-related shooting Sunday in Arlington Heights killed Jamiel Andre Shaw Jr., a 17-year-old high school football star.

That shooting came on the heels of last week’s wounding of five schoolchildren and three adults at a crowded South L.A. bus stop. The victims were hit when a suspected gang member allegedly opened fire on a rival.

Back on Bonnie Brae, yet another memorial sits where Anthony fell. “It is a tragedy,” said Echo Park resident Pavel Beltran, 22, of Anthony’s death, the 76th killing in the city this year. “It is messed up.”

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anna.gorman@latimes.com

richard.winton@latimes.com