Multiple shootings in Lancaster leave 4 dead and 6 injured

A series of shootings in Lancaster left four people dead and six others injured within less than 24 hours. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Homicide Unit is now looking for possible connections between the incidents.

The most recent incident occurred just before 6 p.m. on Wednesday, when seven people were shot. The Sheriff’s Department described it in a news release as a gang-related shooting. Officers arrived at the scene in the 800 block of E. Avenue J-12 to find two injured men who were taken to a nearby hospital and later pronounced dead, officials said. Shortly afterward, however, authorities received reports that five more gunshot victims were admitted together at another local hospital.

The five were in stable condition and were at the same location as the other two men at the time of the shooting, officials said.

The night before, officers had responded to several shootings throughout the city.

First, around 7:30 p.m., a man was shot near J8 and 30th Street West and taken to a local hospital. A little more than an hour later and a few blocks away, another man was shot, this time in the 45600 block of Sierra Highway. The man was taken to a local hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries, authorities said.

About 45 minutes later, at around 9:20 p.m., officers responded to a third shooting, this time in the 400 block of E. Avenue L. The victim was taken to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries, according to the sheriff’s department. It’s unclear if there are any connections between the shootings.

Just a few weeks earlier, on June 7, a man was shot in the 44000 block of Gingham Avenue around 2:30 a.m., according to the Sheriff’s Department. The man was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the man as Erick Monterroso Mcclaughlin, 19, of Lancaster.

Anyone with information about the Lancaster shooting is asked to call the Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500. Anonymous tips can be made to Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-TIPS (8477) or at lacrimestoppers.org.