Above: Keyshawn Brooks’ father, Keeyton Layton, addresses the crowd at a press conference Thursday night; Keyshawn’s mother holds up a photo of the victim (below). Photo by Brittany Woolsey.
MARCH 16 2:08PM | The arraignment of Giovanny Montelongo, the 18-year-old Long Beach resident being charged with capital murder and robbery after the fatal stabbing of 15-year-old Cabrillo High School student Keyshawn Brooks last week, has been postponed.
Montelongo was scheduled to be arraigned Monday afternoon, but the arraignment was rescheduled to April 6 by Judge Laura Laesecke to allow the defendant and his attorney more time to discuss how the defendant would plea. As such, no plea was entered Monday afternoon.
Due to the severity of the charges against him, Montelongo’s previous traffic citations, for which bench warrants for his arrest had been issued, have been dismissed.
Montelongo is being held without bail.
MARCH 16 11:29AM | Giovanny Montelongo, the 18-year-old Long Beach resident accused of fatally stabbing 15-year-old Keyshawn Brooks last week, was charged Monday with capital murder and robbery.
Deputy District Attorney Jacob Yim of the Hardcore Gang Division said Giovanny Montelongo faces one count each of murder, second-degree robbery and attempted second-degree robbery.
Montelongo, a reputed gang member, is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon. Prosecutors will decide later whether to seek the death penalty.
The criminal complaint indicates Montelongo goes by the moniker “Drowsy” and alleges that an attempted robbery against another victim last Thursday was committed “for the benefit of, at the direction of, and in association with a criminal street gang.”
City News Service contributed to this report.
MARCH 13 1:42PM | Councilmember Roberto Uranga of the Seventh District, where a 15-year-old Cabrillo High School student was fatally stabbed Thursday afternoon, said in a statement that the West Long Beach community is mourning the loss of the boy.
“This is an immensely saddening time for the family of Keyshawn Brooks and the West Long Beach community,” Uranga said. “I extend my sincerest condolences to the families, friends, and community members affected by this senseless act of violence. My office will continue to work with the Police Department and Long Beach Unified to ensure the safety of all our students and community members. As a parent, I strongly believe that all our children deserve a safe environment to learn and thrive. The ongoing racial and gang tensions in West Long Beach are unacceptable in a city as diverse as Long Beach and I will not allow our communities to continually live in fear.”
MARCH 13 1:08PM | Giovanny Montelongo, the 18-year-old Long Beach resident who is suspected of fatally stabbing 15-year-old Keyshawn Brooks on Thursday afternoon, was booked for murder at Long Beach City Jail on Friday morning, police said.
Montelongo, who had two additional outstanding juvenile warrants in the amounts of $612 and $571, is being held without bail on an unrelated “no bail” warrant for a juvenile case.
“Due to the juvenile status, no additional details can be released on this case,” said Long Beach Police Department spokeswoman Nancy Pratt.
Montelongo is scheduled to be arraigned Monday in Long Beach Superior Court.
An independent jail records search by the Long Beach Post found that Montelongo has been arrested at least one other time since September 2014.
MARCH 12 11:33PM | With tears in his eyes, a Long Beach father addressed the crowd Thursday night at a press conference organized by the Long Beach Police Department (LBPD), pleading for witnesses to the fatal stabbing of his 15-year-old son earlier the same day to come forward.
Preliminary information found that Keyshawn Brooks, a 15-year-old Cabrillo High School student, was stabbed at about 3:25PM Thursday while he was walking home from school on the 2800 block of Santa Fe Avenue. Police say the suspect was trying to steal Keyshawn’s backpack.
Long Beach Fire Department paramedics transfered Keyshawn to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Police were able to arrest the suspect within an hour of the stabbing, said LBPD Chief Robert Luna, adding that police could not yet confirm whether or not a weapon was recovered, due to those details possibly hindering the ongoing investigation.
Giovanny Montelongo, an 18-year-old Long Beach resident, was arrested in connection to the stabbing after witness statement led police to a residence on the 1700 block of West Columbia.
Luna said Montelongo was likely not a student at Cabrillo and it is unknown at this time if he knew Keyshawn. It is also unknown if Montelongo is a gang member or if he had a prior criminal record.
“This is a tragedy in so many proportions,” Luna said. “This is completely unacceptable.”
Keeyton Layton, Keyshawn’s father, said at the media conference that his son was not a gang member. “This was a murder down outright, and he did not deserve this,” he said.
Layton also thanked the residents who attempted to provide first aid to his son before police arrived about two minutes after the incident.
“It pleases me that he was not alone during his time of death,” he said.
Although the incident did not occur on school grounds, Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) has announced they will provide grief counseling for students, Luna said.
Luna said police believe there may be multiple witnesses, including parents of students, who may have seen what occurred. He is asking anyone who saw anything related to this incident to come forward.
“We want a complete picture of what happened because our ultimate goal is to prosecute this individual to the full extent of the law,” Luna said. “It’s about making our city safe, and this is a very unusual incident on our streets. There is a middle school on Santa Fe and we believe there are several people who witnessed this incident. We want those people to come forward.”
Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to contact the LBPD homicide detail at (562) 570-7244. Anyone wishing to remain anonymous may call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or text TIPLA plus your tip to 274637 (CRIMES), or visit www.LACrimeStoppers.org.
The investigation is ongoing, and no further details are currently available. We will update this story as we learn more.
Kesahwn Brooks (photo altered).
MARCH 12 6:10PM | A high school student was fatally stabbed Thursday afternoon near Stephens Middle School and police have taken a suspect into custody, authorities said.
Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) officers responded to the scene on the 2800 block of Santa Fe Avenue at about 3:25PM regarding an assault with a deadly weapon call, said LBPD spokeswoman Nancy Pratt.
Arriving officers found a male stabbing victim, who was transported to a local hospital with serious injuries and was pronounced deceased.
A suspect has been taken into custody, Pratt said.
According to officials, the school was not put into lock down, and though the area near the intersection of Santa Fe Avenue and Columbia was closed off due to the investigation, students were able to leave campus via alternate routes.
No further information is currently available, and the investigation is ongoing. We will update this story as we learn more.