Two men are in stable condition and one is in critical care after an overnight shooting at a Huntington Park nightclub Tuesday, authorities said.
Huntington Park police confirmed that one suspect is on the run while another man was arrested near the crime scene on unrelated charges.
Police said they received a call of a disturbance at 1:36 a.m. at El Kalua's nightclub on Pacific Boulevard, the city's main thoroughfare.
According to Huntington Park Commander Kenneth Rulon, officers arrived to find three men suffering from gunshot wounds. All three, who have not been publicly identified, were transported to a local hospital, where two of them were initially listed in critical condition. According to Rulon, one of the victims has been declared stable.
Rulon said the shooting was not believed to be gang-related, but authorities were searching for a man who may have been involved. They did not release the name or full description of the person being sought.
Although there were witnesses, no weapons have been recovered, according to Rulon.
As police were marking the perimeter of the crime scene shortly after 2 a.m., they witnessed a man fleeing, Rulon said.
The man, identified by police as Alexander Esparza, 32, fled two blocks, partly on a bicycle and then on foot, before climbing onto the second-floor roof of a building, according to Rulon. He was eventually persuaded to calm down and arrested around 4:15 a.m., Rulon said.
“It’s one of those funny stories where you’re looking for a suspect and you find a criminal at large,” Rulon said. “That was unexpected.”
Esparza is not a suspect in this shooting, according to Rulon. But he does face outstanding warrants for a previous robbery and grand theft auto, according to Rulon and court records. He was also booked for evading arrest, Rulon said.
“When he saw the police, he must have assumed we were chasing him,” Rulon said.
Esparza remains in a city jail while his bail was set at $130,000.
