Long Beach PD detectives arrested a man in connection to the shooting death of a 37-year-old Long Beach resident that took place in an apartment complex near the city’s Washington neighborhood last summer, authorities said.

Lajuan Deshaun King, 30, was arrested on suspicion of murder at 4:15 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 12 near his home on the 1000 block of East Seventh Street, near Gumbiner Park, after homicide detectives collected evidence linking him to the July 11, 2021 shooting death of Bernardo Solorio, police said in statement today.

On the date of the killing, police say they got a call about gunshots just after 9 a.m. in the 300 block of East 17th Street, which is near Long Beach Boulevard.

Officers arrived at the scene and found a man in critical condition with gunshot wounds to the the upper and lower body torso, police said. That man was later identified as Solorio.

Authorities rushed Solorio by ambulance to a nearby hospital where he died from his injuries later that evening at 7 p.m., police said.

An investigation revealed that King was following Solorio on foot to an apartment complex when he shot Solorio before running away towards Long Beach Boulevard.

The motive for the shooting is still under investigation—however, detectives believe it is gang related. The LBPD defines gang-related crimes as any crime committed “for the benefit of, at the direction of or in association with any criminal street gang.”

King’s arrest comes after police seized the firearm used in Solorio’s shooting death in an unrelated investigation, according to LBPD. Detectives believe the gun was used in additional shootings, which are under investigation.

Following the arrest, a search warrant was served at King’s residence to locate further evidence of the crime.

At the time of his arrest, King was held on $4 million bail, according to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department inmate records.

On Jan. 14, detectives presented their case to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office resulting in one count of murder with a personal use of a firearm. King was assigned permanent housing at the Men’s Central Jail in Los Angeles two days later. Records show he is due for court at the Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse Wednesday, Feb. 16. 

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