Huntington Beach man found at LAX, arrested after fleeing fatal stabbing in Long Beach

A Huntington Beach man was arrested Monday on suspicion of murder after a man was fatally stabbed outside a Dave’s Hot Chicken in Long Beach, where a fight broke out early Sunday morning, according to police and news media reports.

Brandon Nguyen was booked on charges of murder after Long Beach homicide detectives located him at Los Angeles International Airport on Monday and detained him without incident. He is being held without bail, according to an LBPD release issued Monday.

The 29-year-old allegedly stabbed a 20-year-old Long Beach man during what restaurant patrons described as a verbal confrontation between two groups of people that quickly escalated into a physical fight, KTLA reported Monday.

Long Beach police officers, who had been responding to another call for service near the city’s Belmont Shore neighborhood, were called to the 5200 block of East 2nd Street at around 1 a.m. and arrived on scene in two minutes to find one victim suffering from at least one stab wound in his upper body, the release stated.

Officers rendered medical aid to the victim — identified by KTLA as Adrian Hernandez, 20, of Long Beach — until paramedics arrived and took over, transporting the man to a nearby hospital. He later succumbed to his injuries, police reported.

The suspect fled from the scene and was the subject of a search by LBPD detectives, who recovered security camera footage and worked with “business and community partners” to identify Nguyen as the person responsible for the stabbing.

Their efforts led them on Monday to LAX, where Nguyen was located and transported to Long Beach City Jail. A police spokeswoman Tuesday would not say whether it is believed Nguyen was attempting to leave the area or may have worked at the airport, as the investigation is still ongoing.

While a search warrant was later served on the suspect’s Huntington Beach residence, it is unclear whether a murder weapon or other evidence may have been retrieved from the property.

Long Beach Police Chief Wally Hebeish praised local officers and detectives for their prompt response Sunday and for working with the department’s Special Investigations Division to locate and apprehend Nguyen.

“We will not tolerate acts of violence in our community and we will commit all available resources to ensuring that those responsible for crimes like this are held accountable,” he said in Monday’s release.

Anyone who may have information about the incident is urged to call Long Beach police homicide detectives Eric Thai or Alfredo Chairez at (562) 570-7244. Anonymous tips can be submitted through “LA Crime Stoppers” by calling (800) 222-TIPS (8477), downloading the “P3 Tips” app via smartphone (available at the Apple app store or Google Play) or by visiting LACrimeStoppers.org.