Woman Arrested After Brother Is Killed by Security Guards

A woman whose brother was fatally wounded in a shootout with security guards outside a mini-mall near MacArthur Park has been arrested in connection with his death, police said Monday.

Maria Villalobos, 26, of Los Angeles was arrested Sunday when she returned to the car where her brother, Miguel, 29, lay dying after the shootout, said Los Angeles Police Lt. Doc Warkentin.

Moments earlier, Miguel Villalobos had fired from the car into a group of security guards and gang members in the mini-mall parking lot at 11th and Alvarado streets, the lieutenant said.

“It’s unclear whether he was firing at the security guards or the gang members,” Warkentin said.

Security guards returned the fire, and one of their rounds went through the right-front passenger seat, hitting Miguel Villalobos in the back, police said. The car continued to 11th and Lake streets, where Maria Villalobos and an unidentified driver abandoned it with her brother inside. She returned within minutes and was taken into custody, Warkentin said, but the driver remains at large.

Miguel Villalobos was taken to California Medical Center where he died. Investigators said his sister was booked for investigation of murder because she was in the car as an alleged accomplice when the shots were fired.

Another shot fired by the guards went through the wall of a convalescent home across from the mini-mall, where it struck Willie Witherspoon, 74, in the leg, Warkentin said. He was taken to Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital and was in stable condition, police said.