Los Angles police announced an arrest has been made in the killing of at least three homeless people and one additional individual.
Police announced during a press conference on Saturday that Jerrid Powell, 33, was arrested in relation to the murders.
The arrest comes just one day after police asked for the public’s help in identifying a suspect when they announced the murders of the three homeless men.
Powell is also believed to be connected to a fatal shooting that occurred during a robbery in San Dimas, about 28 miles east of Los Angeles, Moore added.
Los Angeles authorities said Friday the first killing in the city happened around 3 a.m. Sunday in an alley; the second occurred Monday shortly before 5 a.m. and a third person was killed Wednesday around 2:30 a.m.
Moore said Friday each of the killings in the Los Angeles area happened under similar circumstances and each of the victims were believed to be alone and asleep when they were attacked.
Police said they believe a single person approached each victim as they slept, opened fire then walked away, according to Moore. Each victim was experiencing homelessness, alone and killed in an open area, either a sidewalk or an alley, the chief said Friday.
The killings happened in various locations in the city, including one near Skid Row, a downtown Los Angeles area known for its large homeless population.
City of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said Friday the homeless community in Los Angeles – home to one of the largest unhoused populations in the country – already faces dangerous conditions daily, with four to five unhoused people dying every single day for a variety of reasons, including violence.
