Fountain Valley : Help Sought in Solving Doughnut Shop Slaying

Announcing that their investigation into the slaying two months ago of a 57-year-old Yum Yum Donuts shop manager is at a standstill, police made a public plea Thursday for help in finding the killer.

The manager Virgie LaFountain, was fatally shot in the chest during an apparent robbery at the Brookhurst Street shop Jan. 22 by a man witnesses saw fleeing in a white Volkswagen van.

Detective Dan Bean said investigators are actively trying to locate a couple who reportedly were sitting inside the shop moments before the 2:30 p.m. robbery and shooting. He said the man and woman, about 40 to 45 years old, appeared to be examining some paper work at a table in the north end of the shop. He said detectives believe the couple could have information about the killer, who might have appeared to be another customer.

The assailant is described as a white man in his last 30s or early 40s, with sandy-colored hair thinning on top and receding at the hairline, Bean said. He is approximately 5 feet ,10 inches tall, weighs about 170 pounds and may be wearing clear prescription glasses with plastic frames.

The killer is thought to have fled in a 1960 to 1970 model white van with small red oval taillights and a white or blue, seven-digit California license plate. A witness told police the plate read 2A--three unknown digits--84 and that a red temporary operating permit sticker on the van showed its registration expired last month, Bean said.

Yum Yum Donuts Inc. is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for the robbery and murder.

Police ask that anyone with information about the crime contact Bean or Detective Darryl Nanc at 963-9725, Extension 350.