Armed robberies at six Los Angeles area 7-Eleven stores on National 7-Eleven Day resulted in two dead and three injured. The robberies and shootings took place in Ontario, Upland, Riverside, La Habra, Brea, and Santa Ana — cities all near the Los Angeles area.
Matthew Hirsch, 40, who was working the overnight shift at a 7-Eleven in Brea, was shot and killed early Monday morning, as was Matthew Rule, 24. Rule was found dead outside the store.
The robberies and shootings took place over a fairly compressed area from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m.
The first call to police came from Riverside.
CBS News:
An investigation continued throughout Monday morning as officers, including a Robbery-Homicide team, surveyed the scene and searched for information on the suspect who ran from the scene before authorities arrived.
Investigators said the male suspect stole several random items from the store, but no money.
It was unclear if the suspect who robbed the 7-Eleven locations in Upland and Ontario was the same one who hit the store in Riverside.
Riverside police were working closely with law enforcement agencies in all of the shootings that occurred Monday, noting that there were several considerable similarities in each.
The store was expected to remain closed through most of the morning as crime scene detectives reviewed surveillance footage and photographed the crime scene.
The last shooting to be reported occurred just before 5 a.m.
In Los Angeles County, multiple people required medical transport after a shooting that occurred at the 7-11 on East Whittier Boulevard in La Habra.
The shooting was reported just before 5 a.m., when officers arrived, they found an employee and at least one customer suffering from gunshot wounds. Both are reported to be in stable condition.
Sky2 over the scene of the shooting showed several items of clothing covered in blood strewn about the sidewalk in front of the convenience store.
Police in La Habra, Brea, and Santa Ana say they believe the same suspect is behind the shootings in their respective cities. It’s not clear yet if the Riverside shooting is also connected.
The callous murder of customers and clerks is unusual. Might this have been some kind of gang initiation? It wouldn’t be the first time that gangs used innocents to set examples and “jump in” new members.
Authorities are also looking for a connection to other store robberies several days earlier in the San Fernando Valley.
Source: PJ Media
