1 Shot, 2 Stabbed in Unrelated Attacks

An 18-year-old man was shot twice in the back in Pacoima and two 17-year-old boys were stabbed in Van Nuys on Monday afternoon in unrelated incidents that may both involve gangs, Los Angeles police said.

The shooting victim was taken to an area hospital, where he was in serious condition but expected to survive, a nursing supervisor said.

The man was shot near a Taco Bell restaurant in the 12700 block of Van Nuys Boulevard about 5 p.m., said Officer Jason Lee, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department.

In the Van Nuys incident, the two teens were stabbed near Mulholland Middle School, at 17120 Vanowen St., about 3:15 p.m., said Lt. Marcos Saenz of the LAPD’s Van Nuys Division. One boy was stabbed in the back and arm, Saenz said; he was treated at an area hospital and released.

The second youth was stabbed in the chest and was being treated at an area hospital, but his injuries were not life-threatening, police said. The victims were not students at the middle school.

Investigators were searching for a man in his late teens or early 20s who fled in a beige Honda Accord, police said.

The names of the victims were not available and police have made no arrests in connection with either incident.