Police say a 19-year-old who was killed in a random attack after being kidnapped during a shootout at a Whittier park over the weekend was found dead.
Just after midnight on Sunday, the event took place close to Penn Park’s parking spaces.
Family members said that Andrea Vazquez and her boyfriend were in their car when an armed man came and began shooting at them. According to her sister Edlyn Vazquez, the boyfriend left, but when he came back, Andrea was gone.
“My sister was taken hostage right when he turned around to ask for assistance.”
Who is Gabriel Esparza?
Gabriel Esparza, a 20-year-old Whittier resident, was detained on Monday at his place of employment in the city of Lakewood.
He has since been charged with murder and kidnapping and is currently being held without bail at the Whittier Police Department jail.
This murder was classified as random by police.
According to the latest information, the suspect at Penn Park appeared to have targeted Andrea Vazquez and her male companion at random.
Andrea’s body was discovered late on Monday night in a field of grass near Alessandro Boulevard and Merwin Street in Moreno Valley. Andrea studied fashion design at Fullerton College and worked at a mall in Cerritos.
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Edlyn had claimed that she had used Apple’s Find My iPhone function to locate Andrea for a brief period of time after the incident.
“I found it moving down Highway 60. That’s the last known position I had of her, so I started tracking it, and it stopped at Moreno Valley,” she added.
In the meantime, a weapon that was allegedly used in the crime was found. The 2013 white Toyota Tacoma truck that belonged to Andrea was also found.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office will be presented with the case on Wednesday, according to the police.
