Manager Arrested in Slaying at Newspaper Distribution Plant

An ongoing dispute between two managers at a newspaper distribution warehouse ended in the shooting death of one of the men early Tuesday, police said.

Oscar Melendez, 38, of Palmdale was arrested by Los Angeles police and booked on suspicion of murder. Melendez allegedly killed Moises Escobar, 39, of Reseda, who worked with him as a night shift manager at the plant. Melendez is being held on $1-million bail.

Police said the shooting occurred about 2:45 a.m. at the T Cook Distributors warehouse in the 6800 block of Hayvenhurst Avenue.

The men held similar positions in the company, which is under contract to distribute the Daily News of Los Angeles. Melendez reportedly outranked the victim, police said.

Both men were reporting to work when Melendez allegedly shot Escobar once in the upper torso with a handgun, said Los Angeles Police Det. Al Aldaz. Another employee found Escobar’s body and called police.

Aldaz said the suspect was at the plant when authorities arrived but pretended he had just arrived with other employees.

“He tried to blend in,” Aldaz said.

The two men had been arguing over work-related issues for two months, but police refused to elaborate on the origin of the dispute. Aldaz said the men had a fight Sunday that may have contributed to the shooting.