Boyle Heights ranks second in LA neighborhoods with most homicides in 2023

The City of Los Angeles saw 327 homicides in 2023, 17% fewer than the 382 recorded the year prior. Even so, Boyle Heights saw an increased number of murders and remained ranked second for the most homicides.

In total, Boyle Heights experienced a total of 23 homicides, five more than in 2022. A majority of the murders happened during the summer months, with homicides jumping from 4 at the beginning of June to 18 at the end of August.

Here’s each homicide recorded, ordered by date:

1. On Friday, January 6th, 25-year-old Omar De Los Santos (Latino male) was shot and killed under the 6th Street Bridge at around 10 pm.
2. On Sunday, January 22nd, 29-year-old Oscar Adrian Vargas (Latino male) was shot, set on fire, and killed on the 1600 Block of S. Grande Vista Avenue at around 4:35 am. The victim is believed to have been unhoused at the time.
3. On Tuesday, March 14th, 32-year-old Ivan Rogelio Partida (Latino male) was shot and killed at 1301 Rio Vista Avenue. The time of the incident is unclear.
4. On Saturday, April 1st, 31-year-old Andrew Leon Gutierrez (Latino male) was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting at 2739 ½ Wabash Avenue at around 1:22 am. 
5. On Wednesday, June 7th, 41-year-old Raul Chanaz Hernandez (Latino male) was shot and killed at 1220 South Grande Vista Avenue at around 7:49 pm.
6. On Thursday, June 8th, 26-year-old Rodrigo Ramirez (Latino male) was stabbed and killed at the intersection of 1st and Indiana Streets by Metro L Line tracks at around 5:05 am. 
7. On Tuesday, June 13th, 25-year-old Noah Jonathan Martinez (Latino male) was shot and killed in front of 3480 Emery Street at around 4:30 am. 
8. On Thursday, June 15th, 30-year-old Jaime Clara (Latino male) was shot and killed near Hollenbeck Park at 415 S. Saint Louis Street just before midnight.
9. On Sunday, July 2nd, 30-year-old Michael Pilar Lopez (Latino male) was shot and killed at 2820 The Mall Street at around 3:45 am. 
10. On Monday, July 10th, 55-year-old Fabian Manuel Guerrero (Latino male) was shot and killed at 2735 E. 6th Street at around 3 am. 
11. On Wednesday, July 12th, 23-year-old Kevin Santiago Quevedo Rivera (Latino male) was shot and killed at 545 Euclid Avenue sometime before 6 pm.
12. On Tuesday, June 13th, 28-year-old Tomas Jamie Lopez (Latino male) was shot and killed at 3343 E. 6th Street at around 9:30 pm.
13. On Thursday, July 13th, 25-year-old Erik Sanchez (Latino male) was shot and killed at 3029 Wabash Avenue at around 7:20 pm. 
14. On Sunday, July 16th, 19-year-old Carlos Cerezo Caberera Jr. (Latino male) was shot and killed around the intersection of 1st Street and South Anderson Avenue. The time of the incident is unclear.
15. On Sunday, July 16, 19-year-old Melanie Mancera (Latina female) was shot and killed at 123 S. Gless Street at around 10:44 pm.
16. On Tuesday, August 1st, 18-year-old Lennon Alfredo Torres (Latino male) was shot and killed at Evergreen Park sometime in the afternoon.
17. On Saturday, August 12th, 16-year-old Alfonso Ramos (Latino male) was shot and killed in the Evergreen Recreation Center at around 5 pm. 
18. On Thursday, August 17th, 45-year-old Fermin Ruelas (Latino male) was shot and killed at 545 S. Lorena Street at around 10 am. 
19. On Saturday, September 9th, 56-year-old Monica Jenniches (Latina female) was shot and killed at Ross Valencia Community Park at around 2 pm. 
20. On Wednesday, October 4th, 29-year-old Daniel Anthony Rios (Latino male) was stabbed and killed at 150 N. Soto Street at around 6 am. 
21. On Wednesday, October 18th, 45-year-old Jorge Gonzalez Palomino (Latino male) was shot and killed at 2001 City View Avenue at around 9:20 pm.
22. On Wednesday, October 25th, 40-year-old Melchor Txoc Ixmata (Latino male) was shot and killed at the intersection of S. Mott Street and Gleason Avenue at around 4:33 pm. 
23. On Friday, November 3rd, 39-year-old Rodolfo Javier Garcia (Latino male) was shot and killed at 3483 Emery Street at around 2:43 am. 

[Details cross-checked using Boyle Heights Beat, LA Times Homicide Report, LA Coroner’s Office, LAPD End of Year Crime Statistics, Crosstown LA]

All 23 victims of homicide in Boyle Heights in 2023 were Latino. Most were male, with two females killed. In total, the murders consisted of 21 shootings and two stabbings. In both 2023 and 2022, Boyle Heights ranked second in the most homicides, with Downtown LA ranking first in both years. 

Last year marks the fourth consecutive year that homicides exceeded 300 in the city (355 in 2020, 402 in 2021, 392 in 2022, 327 in 2023). According to Crosstown LA, that level was not hit even once in the 2010s.

So far this year, one homicide has been documented in the area of Boyle Heights. On Sunday, January 28th, 14-year-old Steve “Matthew” Velez was shot and killed in the area of 1st and Pecan Streets at around 5:30 pm. 

The full 2023 LAPD Homicide Report is available for viewing online.