1 Killed, 5 Injured in Series of Weekend Shootings

One man was killed and five people were wounded last weekend in Northeast Los Angeles in a rash of shootings that authorities believe were gang-related.

A fatal confrontation Sunday between members of rival gangs followed four drive-by shootings Friday and Saturday, Northeast Division police said.

“That makes a very heavy weekend,” Sgt. John Ferguson said. “It wasn’t typical.”

Gustavo Chairez of Atwater was killed at 3:50 a.m. Sunday after he and about six other members of an Elysian Valley gang drove to the 3200 block of Drew Street near Chapman Street--a Glassell Park gang’s territory, Lt. Rob Watters said.

The Elysian Valley gang began fighting with about 10 Glassell Park youths, two of whom chased their Elysian Valley rivals down the street and shot at them with a handgun, witnesses told police.

Chairez, who celebrated his 22nd birthday Saturday, was struck several times in the chest and arms and died on Drew Street. David Duran, 21, was found a block away, on Chapman Street, with a gunshot wound in the chest. He was taken to Los Angeles County General Hospital and has been listed in stable condition, Watters said.

Police on Tuesday located a third Elysian Valley gang member who had been shot during the incident but had fled. Gilbert Nevarez, 28, was found by police at the County-USC Medical Center, where he was being treated for a gunshot wound in his back. He has been listed in stable condition.

Of the four drive-by shootings that occurred over the weekend, three resulted in injuries, Detective Jose Carrillo said. The incidents, scattered throughout the area, were unrelated, he said.

A 17-year-old youth, whom police believe was not a gang member, was shot about 5 p.m. Friday while standing at Sunset Boulevard and Normandie Avenue. Police believe that three members of a Hollywood gang were responsible for the shooting, Carrillo said.

About five hours later, a 15-year-old girl was shot twice in the legs while standing outside a house in the 3600 block of Glenfeliz Boulevard in Atwater, Carrillo said. Witnesses told police that two youths pulled up in front of the house, yelled a gang slogan and fired the shots. The girl was not believed to be a gang member, Carrillo said.

Members of an Atwater gang early Saturday fired seven shots at rival gang members standing in the 4100 block of Bemis Street, missing them but hitting the house of a 42-year-old man, Carrillo said. No one was injured.

At 2 a.m. Saturday, a 17-year-old member of a Glassell Park gang was gunned down in the 2300 block of West Avenue 33, Carrillo said. The youth, who was shot once in the shoulder, told police that he was trying to stop a fight between a friend and rival gang members.