Off-Duty Detective Shoots 2 Boys, Kills 1

An off-duty Los Angeles police detective shot and killed a 15-year-old gang member and critically wounded a 17-year-old accomplice when they attempted to rob him after a daylong crime spree in the east San Fernando Valley, police said Saturday.

Salvador Gallegos, a veteran homicide detective with the Devonshire Division in Northridge, shot the two boys shortly before midnight Friday in a parking lot at the intersection of Foothill Boulevard and Maclay Street in Sylmar, police said.

The two youths, whose names were not released because they are juveniles, were among five gang members, ages 14 to 17, suspected in three robberies and a drive-by shooting before the attempt to rob Gallegos at gunpoint, police said.

Gallegos had completed a call at a pay phone when he was confronted by the 15-year-old, who pointed a .25-caliber pistol at him, Officer Roy Riley said. Gallegos fired several shots from his own gun at the teen-ager, hitting him once in the neck, Riley said. A spokesman for the Los Angeles coroner’s office confirmed that the gunshot wound to the neck was the cause of death.

Gallegos then saw the 17-year-old driver of the van stick his hand out the window and, fearing the driver also had a weapon, shot him, Riley said. Police would not say whether a second gun was recovered from the scene.

The van driver was struck in the left arm and cheek, Riley said. He collapsed in his seat, and the van rolled forward onto the fallen youth, Riley said.

Gallegos held his gun on the three other youths while he called for backup officers, Riley said.

The wounded boy was taken to Holy Cross Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition, officials said. The others were in custody Saturday at Sylmar Juvenile Hall, where they were booked on suspicion of murder, police said.

The shooting is under investigation by the department’s officer-involved shooting unit.

Although details of the crime spree were not released Saturday, it started about 2 p.m. Friday when the 15-year-old youth allegedly stole a car in the northeast Valley area, police spokesman Sgt. Dennis Zine said.

“He went around in this car and began picking up his friends, who knew he had a gun,” Zine said.

Five youths then drove to the 15-year-old’s house. Four of them left a short time later in the stolen car, which broke down nearby, he said.

The four began walking toward Lake View Terrace to visit a girl and were rejoined on the way by the fifth youth, Zine said. The teen-agers then stole a van at gunpoint, he said.

While traveling in the van, the youths spotted a pizza delivery man, Zine said. They robbed the man at gunpoint of about $40 and fought with him before departing, he said.

The youths then drove a short distance and stole a gray Mustang from a man. A witness yelled at the youths to stop. One of the youths fired two shots at the witness, but missed, Zine said.

Two of the youths then drove off in the Mustang, while three remained in the van, Zine said.

The two vehicles drove at high speeds to 8th Street in San Fernando, said Sgt. Larry Barnard of the San Fernando Police Department.

When they passed a group of about five people standing in front of a house, some of the youths in the cars yelled gang slogans, Barnard said.

The van circled back toward the house, and a passenger fired a shot toward the group outside, missing them, he said.

Both van and Mustang then sped away. The Mustang broke down soon afterward and the youths abandoned it at 8th Street and Harding Avenue in San Fernando and got back in the van.

Zine said that when the youths saw Gallegos making a phone call, they felt “he had a nice car, and they decided to rob him.”