Boy’s Body Found in South L.A. Dumpster

A woman looking for recyclables in a dumpster found the body of what appeared to be a 9-year-old boy Saturday in South Los Angeles, police said.

The body was found in the 700 block of 73rd and Hoover streets at 3 p.m., police said.

LAPD Capt. Kenneth Garner said it appeared the boy had been recently placed in the dumpster near an alley behind an apartment building.

The coroner will perform an autopsy to determine the cause of death.

“We don’t know where the young man came from,” Garner said.

Police used a bloodhound to search the neighborhood. At one point, officers emerged from behind yellow crime-scene tape with the dog and a clear plastic bag containing what appeared to be a piece of bright blue clothing.

After letting the hounds sniff the material, three officers and a detective followed the dog as it sniffed its way east down the alley from Hoover Street toward Figueroa Street.

Police were focusing on an apartment building at 73rd and Hoover streets.

Several dozen residents huddled nearby watching the scene.

“It’s very scary,” said Deborah Johnson, a resident on the block. “My son is 10 years old. He’s a little boy too and he likes to come outside and play.”