One man was killed and another was wounded in a suspected gang-related shooting in Long Beach yesterday, authorities said.

The violence broke out on a sidewalk outside of an apartment building on East 14th Street just west of Junipero Avenue, Long Beach police said in a statement.

Around 5:35 p.m. Sunday, a group of five people were standing in front of the building when two men approached them, according to the LBPD. One of the approaching men yelled and “subsequently opened fire on the group striking the decedent and the other victim,” police said.

A neighbor who lives across the street said she heard about five shots. She looked outside and saw a man on the ground with about half a dozen people around him.

“The people across the street were screaming,” according to the neighbor, who said it looked like two people took off running after the shooting.

Police confirmed the attackers fled on foot before officers arrived. When officers got to the scene, they found one wounded man on the sidewalk and another in the apartment building’s courtyard.

The first man had been shot in the upper body, police said. He was rushed to the hospital where he died. The second man, who’d been shot in the lower body, survived, police said. He was treated for his wounds at a hospital and later released.

“The exact motive for the shooting is unknown, however, the incident is being investigated as gang-related,” the LBPD said. Long Beach police define “gang-related” crime as any “committed for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with any criminal street gang.”

The neighbor who saw the aftermath of the attack said she recognized some of the people involved. They often hang out in a nearby alley, she said.

“We’re used to it,” she said flatly about the violence.

In October, a man was arrested in the same area for shooting at a group of people talking in an alley, according to police. Nobody was hurt in that case. In July, there was a similar shooting incident, although nobody was arrested in that case. It’s unclear if any of the crimes are related.

Monday morning, a single birthday candle and some incense were burning, stuck in the dirt where the men had been shot a day earlier.

Police identified the dead man as Bradley Meas, a 32-year-old Long Beach resident.

Investigators asked anyone with more information about the incident to call homicide detectives Sean Magee or Leticia Gamboa at 562-570-7244. Anonymous tips can be sent to Los Angeles Regional Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-222-TIPS visiting lacrimestoppers.org.

Editor’s note: This story was updated with more details from police.

 

Jeremiah Dobruck is managing editor of the Long Beach Post. Reach him at [email protected] or @jeremiahdobruck on Twitter.