The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the city of Carson will brief the media and Carson residents at a news conference today on their investigation into two bodies recently recovered in or near the Dominguez Channel.
A man’s body was located around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday when deputies responded to a report of an unresponsive person alongside the Dominguez Channel in the 2100 block of East Sepulveda Boulevard, which is just east of the Long Beach city limits, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
Footage from the scene showed a pop-up tent typically used to shield a body from view, covering a spot on the channel bank.
The man was pronounced dead at the scene, and Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau detectives were called in to investigate.
The body’s appearance was the second one found in the same area in the past two days.
The sheriff’s department reported that another body was found in the channel near the Victoria Golf Course in Carson Tuesday.
That person, initially identified only as a female victim, was found unresponsive and floating in a body of water around 12:05 p.m. Tuesday near the Dominguez Channel Bike Path in the 20000 block of South Avalon Boulevard.
The Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner later confirmed that the victim was a girl between 6 and 13 years old who stood between 4 feet, 4 inches and 4 feet, 8 inches tall and weighed between 60 and 85 pounds. She had dark brown or black hair and brown eyes.
Sheriff’s officials said the girl was in a state of “severe decomposition” and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Homicide detectives later responded to the scene to take over the investigation, but it was unclear if any foul play was suspected.
“Investigators learned a patron at a local golf course, which runs along the Dominguez Channel, saw the girl floating downstream and called emergency services,” sheriff’s officials said in a statement.
The victim’s name was being withheld by the medical examiner pending notification of relatives, sheriff’s officials said.
Anyone with information regarding the deaths was urged to call the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or visit lacrimestoppers.org.
Capt. Alise Norman, the commanding officer of the Carson Sheriff’s Station, was scheduled to provide information at the press conference after 10 a.m. Thursday.