East Valley News: Man Shot in Gang-Related Attack; Homicide Victim's Family Sues Homeowner's Association

Editor's note: These are Police/Fire stories from areas around the East San Fernando Valley not covered by Patch. Check North Hollywood-Toluca Lake Patch, Studio City Patch and Sherman Oaks Patch for new in those areas.

Pacoima

One male was shot as a group of gang members were arguing in the parking lot of a shopping mall in Panorama City Tuesday.

The victim was not part of the gang group, Los Angeles Police Department Officer Bruce Borihanh said. He was taken to a hospital with abdominal wounds.

Two suspects were detained and are being questioned, Borihanh said.

Police were called to the 8600 block of Van Nuys Boulevard at 3:10 p.m., Borihanh said.

Pacoima

The daughter of a Pacoima woman who was stabbed to death -- allegedly by her husband -- has filed a wrongful death suit against the homeowners association of the condominium complex where the slain woman lived.

Marlene Martinez filed the case Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court against the Glenoaks Townhomes homeowners association stemming from the May 1, 2010, death of 33-year-old Olga Martinez. The plaintiff also names Aberdeen Management Co. as well as Centurion Security Inc., which provided security guards to the residents. She is seeking unspecified damages.

A representative of Glenoaks Townhomes could not be immediately reached.

Martinez was found lying in a pool of blood at the entrance to her garage of the complex at 11150 Glenoaks Blvd., according to the LAPD.

According to the lawsuit, the defendants knew by September 2009 that Olga Martinez had a restraining order against her husband, Napoleon E. Castro, and that he posed a potential danger to her.

"It was expected that defendants would provide a level of care in whom they admitted to the secured housing area in the gated community and restrict unauthorized visitors," the suit states. "Defendants breached their duty of care by permitting ...Castro to enter the building."

Van Nuys

Two men were in custody this week following the shooting death of a man with whom they were drinking in a Van Nuys apartment, police said.

Police detained Tito Diaz, 43, and William Jimenez, 25, following the outbreak of gunfire in an apartment in the 14600 block of Friar Street at 7:25 p.m. Sunday, said Det. Rob Bub of the Los Angeles Police Department's Van Nuys Station.

Diaz, Jimenez, the victim and a number of other men appeared to have been drinking alcohol, and Diaz and the victim were passing a handgun back and forth between themselves, police said

Two shots went off, and one bullet hit the victim in the head, Bub said, adding that Diaz and Jimenez then tried to dispose of the victim's body by discarding it in a dumpster.

The victim's name was not immediately released pending family notification, and police did not immediately say if the weapon, which was recovered, was fired in anger or went off accidentally.