Resident Shoots Man During Burglary

A 23-year-old suspected gang member who broke into an Arleta house was critically wounded Wednesday after he was chased and shot by the occupant of the residence, Los Angeles police reported.

The injured Pacoima man was placed on life-support equipment at Holy Cross Medical Center after the 2 a.m. shooting in the 13800 block of Wingo Street, police said. The man’s name was not released because his family had not been notified.

The incident began when the Pacoima man and a 17-year-old boy, both identified by police as members of a Pacoima gang, broke into the Wingo Street residence of Isaiah Brewster, 28, and threatened him with a handgun, Detective Al Ferrand said.

Brewster was an acquaintance of the two intruders but is not believed to be a gang member. The motive for the break-in was not known, Ferrand said.

During the confrontation, a fight began and the two intruders fled. Police said Brewster grabbed a shotgun and chased the 23-year-old and shot him in the upper body.

Brewster was detained and questioned by police but was later released. “There is a self-defense issue and we discussed it with the district attorney’s office and released him,” Ferrand said.

The juvenile was arrested in the neighborhood on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and was being held at Sylmar Juvenile Hall.