Security Head of Valley Apartments Is Slain

The security chief for a crime-plagued Northridge apartment complex was fatally gunned down as he left a night class at Reseda High School in what police believe was an ambush in retaliation for his efforts in fighting neighborhood drug dealing and gang trouble.

Pedro Banegas was killed Thursday night, police said in a written statement, because he “aggressively battled the influence of narcotics dealers and gang members . . . and was greatly responsible for major strides to clean up crime problems” at the sprawling Park Parthenia Apartments.

Banegas, 42, was well-known in the 466-unit, low-rent complex, which has been notorious for rampant drug dealing and other crimes. He was despised by gang members because “he messes with them and evicts them,” Los Angeles Police Det. Rick Swanston said.

Police have not yet identified a suspect but are looking for a Latino, age 26 or 27, about 5 feet, 8 inches tall, and who was wearing dark pants, gloves and a light-colored shirt at the time of the shooting. “At this point, we are operating under the assumption that he made enemies within the gang that operates around that Park Parthenia complex,” Swanston said.

A Honduran immigrant and the father of two children, Banegas had served as a block captain in the LAPD’s Neighborhood Watch program for the past three years, and was characterized by police officers as an honest and forthright man who worked hard to root out the criminal element in the complex where he worked and lived.

But some apartment dwellers painted a different picture Friday, describing a man who was called “Don Pedro” by residents who feared him because of what they characterized as ruthless and arbitrary enforcement of the rules.

“He was no goody-two-shoes,” Beatrice Aviles said. “He was overly aggressive . . . mean with everyone, even the little kids. He’d tell them to go inside; he wouldn’t let them play on the street.

“Heaven knows who he bumped into” the night he was killed, she said. “It might have been somebody he beat up before.”

Banegas was shot to death as he left his English class at Reseda High, accompanied by his wife, Ana. A witness told police the gunman crept alongside cars parked on a street north of the school, then approached Banegas as he got into his pickup truck.

The gunman fired one shot through the driver’s side window, which hit Banegas in the shoulder. Banegas and his wife then fled the truck and tried to run away, but the gunman caught up with them and fired several more shots into Banegas’ back and chest, police said.

He was pronounced dead at Northridge Hospital Medical Center shortly after 9 p.m.

Some friends and neighbors said Banegas was proud of his crime-fighting efforts and seemed to downplay the dangers.

“I would tell him, ‘Pedro, you should be careful,’ ” said his night school teacher, Donna Kihara, who was teaching him English. “He said, ‘If somebody doesn’t do it, who will?’ Mainly he wanted his community to be safe. . . . He set a good example for everyone.”

Police said his life had been threatened several times, but Banegas refused to formally report all but one of those threats. He did, however, file a battery complaint Tuesday with police, claiming he had been pushed by a juvenile he had caught vandalizing the complex. And in January, he found some narcotics and turned them over to police, according to LAPD records.

For years, police and neighborhood groups have tried to crack down on crime and drug problems at the complex. Then last year, some residents began to complain about overly aggressive security guards.

And on Friday, some residents of the complex said Banegas was among those guards who invited trouble with his tough-guy approach.

Stories circulated that he and other security guards had Maced residents and visitors, throwing them up against walls and interrogating them, as well as harassing those he did not like.

Because many of her neighbors are in the country without permission, they did not complain, Aviles said. They did not want to risk being evicted or deported. But others did complain, and in December there was a management shake-up and three security guards were fired, she said.

Managers and owners of the complex were not available Friday to comment on those claims. The office was closed in memory of Banegas, a sign said.

But a security guard who worked with Banegas at the complex denied that Banegas had been overly aggressive, and said Banegas only tried to “keep the peace” with resident gang members.

“He gave his life for the community, and it’s a shame,” said Jonathan Bates, who spent 18 months patrolling the complex alongside Banegas.

“He was always extending his hand . . . riding around on his mountain bike helping people. Ninety percent of the people here loved the guy, but there’s 10% that didn’t.”

Times staff writers Sandy Banks, Beth Shuster and Martha L. Willman contributed to this story.