Pregnant Woman Wounded, 6-Month-Old Fetus Killed

A pregnant woman was shot in the stomach, killing her 6-month-old fetus, in what Los Angeles police termed a drug-related dispute with a 15-year-old alleged gang member early Saturday.

Other victims of weekend violence included a 65-year-old Long Beach man who authorities say was the random victim of a drive-by shooting and a 41-year-old Cerritos man who was stabbed to death in his bedroom.

Authorities say Nova Hale, 20, was shot in the stomach after an argument with a teen-ager in a side yard in the 2700 block of Hauser Boulevard. Hale was rushed to a local hospital where she was listed in critical condition, police said.

The alleged assailant, who was not identified by police because of his age, fled but was arrested in his South Los Angeles home two hours later and booked on suspicion of murder.

Detectives said the youth had accused Hale of stealing cocaine.

In another incident, Clarence Long, 65, was killed in a drive-by shooting just before 6 p.m. Friday in the 1700 block of Olive Avenue.

Long, a retired Navy veteran, was struck in the chest by one of a barrage of bullets fired randomly into a street-corner crowd from a maroon-colored car with two male occupants, police said.

“Somebody in the crowd was involved in a verbal word contest . . . a couple hours before,” said Long Beach Detective Ron Pavek. “They may have come back and said ‘I’ll show you’ . . . and (Long) was just standing on the corner.”

Meanwhile, in Cerritos, a 41-year-old man was found stabbed to death in his bedroom Saturday morning by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies responding to an emergency call from the man’s wife.

Kianfar Barkhordar, a resident of the 13400 block of Aclare Street, suffered multiple stab wounds to his upper torso in the 6 a.m. attack and was pronounced dead at the scene. A live-in baby-sitter, whose name was withheld by authorities, was also stabbed in the upper torso and rushed to a local hospital where she was listed in stable condition.

Sheriff’s Deputy George Ducoulombier said that Barkhordar’s wife, whose first name was not released by authorities, called 911 and said in a distraught voice that an intruder was inside her home.

Mrs. Barkhordar and the couple’s 6-year-old son were not injured in the attack.

“At this time the motive for the murder is unknown and there appears to be nothing missing from the residence,” Ducoulombier said.

In Lynwood, an alleged gang drive-by shooting killed a 22-year-old man standing on the sidewalk shortly after midnight Saturday.

Sheriff’s deputies said Lloyd Polk of Lynwood was hit by gunfire from a passing vehicle in the 11100 block of Duncan Avenue. He died 40 minutes later at St. Francis Medical Center.