Public health officials probing Malibu restaurant worker’s death

Amid continuing confusion over the cause of death of a Malibu restaurant worker, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said Thursday that it was looking into the incident to determine if there was a threat to public safety.

Carlos Ivan Rodas, 32, was found dead Sunday night in a pool of blood in front of Guido’s restaurant on Cross Creek Road; he had been sent to dispose of trash. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department initially reported that Rodas had been shot or beaten. But Wednesday, detectives reported that he had died of an upper respiratory infection.

“There was a significant amount of blood at the scene and at different locations,” department spokesman Steve Whitmore said.

The department has put a “security hold” on information about the case until toxicology results are completed, which could take up to four weeks.

Malibu officials, meanwhile, issued a statement Thursday saying they were “disappointed by the confusing and contradictory messages given to the media and public.”

City Manager Jim Thorsen elaborated in an e-mail: “It was disappointing to learn that the information being disseminated through sheriff personnel about the potential cause of death had not been fully determined prior to the statements.”

Whitmore said a security hold was placed on the case because of the “preponderance of misinformation going on that the detectives needed to manage it.”

He said he understood Malibu’s concern: “I wish I had a clear-cut answer.”

martha.groves@latimes.com