More than three years after a teenager was shot in his house in Pasadena, officials accused two people in connection with his death.
Iran Moreno, 13, played video games in his room on November 20, 2021, when an wandering ball pierced through his window and killed him. Police said at the time that they did not think he was the planned objective of the shooter.
The County Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman Announced Friday This suspect of Muhammad Abdul-Malik, 38, and Teraeja Laquanna Flemmings, 31, who is accused of being the flight driver, were accused of the murder of the Pasadena adolescent. Abdul-Malik faces an additional crime leader in the possession of a firearm by a criminal.
Abdul-Malik and Flemmings could incur life to state prison if they were guilty.
“The violence that took the life of this young boy is not only tragic, but also unacceptable and criminal,” Hochman said in a statement on accusations.
“No family should never have to endure the sorrow to lose a child in such horrible circumstances,” he said. “Although we cannot cancel this tragedy, we will work tirelessly to make sure that the managers are held responsible.”
The District Prosecutor’s Office could not be contacted immediately for additional comments.
The case knew its first break in June, when the Pasadena police released public identification information on the suspects obtained from the recently improved surveillance video.
Pasadena police lieutenant Carlo Montiglio said the tools used to improve video “have become available”.
“As technology has improved, it allowed us to continue the case,” said Montiglio.
A week after the publication of the details of the surveillance video, the Pasadena police were also published to the public Detailed sketch of suspects This finally led to their arrests, said Montiglio.
Abdul-Malik was arrested on July 11 in Orlando, Florida, where he awaited extradition, and Flemmings was arrested on July 16 in San Fernando. Its indictment is scheduled for Monday.
Although the real target of the shooting remains unknown, Montiglio said: “We do not believe that it is linked to the gangs in the sense of reprisals or trying to shoot another person.”
Montiglio also said that although Abdul-Malik and Flemmings are presumed to be a couple at the time of filming, they are no longer suspected of being together.
In the days that followed Iran’s death by 2021, members of the Pasadena community held a vigil in honor of victims of armed violence. The authorities also undertook to devote additional resources to the fight against what the head of the deputy Cheryl Moody described as a “wave of shootings”.
“The threat of armed violence is a real danger, and the Pasadena police service works with diligence to withdraw firearms from the streets and out of the hands of those who intend to harm others,” said Moody at the time.
Times Summer Lin staff, Nathan Solis and Brittny Mejia contributed to this report.
