One Man Killed, Another Wounded After Soccer Match

One man was killed and another seriously wounded in apparently unrelated incidents after an exhibition match between the Mexican and Salvadoran national soccer teams at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Baltazar Luna, 28, of Los Angeles was stabbed several times by an unknown assailant at 9:15 p.m. Wednesday. Luna, the father of a 5-year-old boy and 2-month-old twins, died shortly after at County-USC Medical Center.

On the other side of the Coliseum, Raul Gonzales, 27, of Los Angeles was shot. Gonzales was also taken to County-USC, where he was listed in serious condition Thursday afternoon.

LAPD Deputy Chief Mark Kroeker said Thursday that the two incidents were “absolutely unrelated” and had “no gang relation.”

Security at the event was adequate, he said, with 271 security guards and police officers. Of the 54,519 spectators in attendance Wednesday night, guards ejected only two people from the game.

Police say Gonzales was talking to his friend Moises Mojica, 27, at 39th Place and Vermont Avenue after the game. As they were talking, a man across the street pulled out a 9-millimeter pistol and fired two rounds at the men for no apparent reason. One bullet struck Gonzales in the stomach.

The shooter fled down 39th Place with Mojica running after him. The assailant fired twice more before he dropped the gun and tried to hijack a passing car. Police say Mojica tackled the shooter and held him until police arrived.

Police have charged Victor Martinez with two counts of attempted murder and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon.

About the same time, on the southeastern side of the Coliseum, Luna and his cousin David Gomez passed by a group of five males, whose ages ranged from 13 to 20, who were kicking and beating an unidentified man. Gomez told police that one of the men followed them and called out: “Get the knife!” One of the men stabbed Luna, who ran across Figueroa Street with his cousin to the parking lot of a fast food restaurant. There Luna collapsed.

Introducing a motion for the city to offer a $25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Luna’s killer, Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas said: “We deplore these acts of violence whenever and wherever they occur in our city.”

The game was practice for both teams in preparation for the 1998 World Cup in Paris.