2 Held in Death of Man Caught in Gang Gunfire

Two men have been arrested on suspicion of murder in the slaying of a North Hollywood man shot to death as he chased away gang members painting graffiti on his garage, Los Angeles police said Tuesday.

Robert Bernal, 19, and David Chavez, 23, both of North Hollywood, were being held in connection with the death last Thursday of Francisco Gudino Serratos, a 59-year-old welder, Detective Mark Aragon said. Acting on tips from witnesses and gang members, detectives arrested Bernal on Friday and Chavez on Monday, Aragon said.

Detectives have not determined which of the two men fired the shot that killed Serratos, Aragon said.

Two other gang members nicknamed Payasito and Shadow are being sought in connection with the killing, Aragon said. Detectives are also searching for a red 1970s model Chevrolet Camaro believed to be driven by Payasito.

Serratos was trying to protect a garage he rented in the 6800 block of Radford Avenue from graffiti writers when a rival gang arrived and opened fire, hitting him in the neck with a stray bullet, police said.

Aragon said that prior to the shooting, the two gangs had been involved in a shouting match at a nearby shopping center in North Hollywood. In retaliation, Bernal, Chavez and the two other gang members went to the rival gang’s territory, police said.

“They fired some shots at the rival gang, but missed and struck Mr. Serratos,” Aragon said.

The killing left Serratos’ wife and 12 children unable to pay for a funeral, he added, but a fund to help the family has been set up at a Wells Fargo Bank branch in Toluca Lake.

Serratos was the 437th person to die in a gang-related homicide in Los Angeles County this year, authorities said. About 10% of the victims are innocent bystanders such as Serratos, and the rest are gang members, according to a report released last year by the county district attorney’s office.

Serratos was killed just eight days after a car driven by a motorist who was allegedly drunk careened into the living room of his apartment, where he had been living for 20 years.