Local News in Brief : Man Held in Slaying of Sun Valley Bar Guard

A22-year-old Sun Valley man was arrested late Friday night in the shooting death of an unarmed security guard who was gunned down as he escorted a group of unruly patrons out of a Sun Valley bar, Los Angeles police reported Saturday.

The suspect, Manuel Rios Beltran, was arrested when he was spotted driving a car matching the description of the vehicle that sped away from Lalo’s Dancing and Cocktails, where guard Anthony Giordano, 36, of Burbank, was killed, Detective Phil Sowers said.

Giordano was shot several times in the bar’s parking lot about 11:10 p.m. as he and another security guard led several customers out of the bar after they had caused a disturbance, Sowers said.

Giordano, who was not wearing a uniform or carrying a weapon at the time of the shooting, was pronounced dead at the scene.

About 30 minutes later, Beltran was arrested without incident near the intersection of Cantara Street and Fair Avenue in Sun Valley. He was booked on suspicion of murder and was being held without bail Saturday at the North Hollywood Division jail.

No other suspects have been arrested in the killing. Sowers would not saying whether police had recovered the murder weapon.

The bar, located in the 8200 block of San Fernando Road, has been the scene of several violent incidents in the past, Sowers said.