A man opened fire inside a crowed Whittier Blvd bar early Sunday and wounded six people, police said.
The shooting occurred around 12:45 a.m. at the Holiday Bar at 2471 Whittier Blvd. An LAPD spokesperson said that a verbal and physical altercation broke out between patrons. That’s when the suspect reportedly pulled out a handgun and fired multiple rounds into the crowd.
First responders at the scene identified three people struck by gunfire and quickly took them to local hospitals, where they were reportedly in stable condition.
Investigators later discovered that three additional victims were also shot during the conflict but had taken themselves to nearby hospitals.
The victims were identified as four men and two women, all in their 20s.
The suspect was detained and held by other bar patrons until police arrived and took him into custody. On Monday police identified him as 19-year-old David Erasmo Roman.
On Wednesday, the Holiday Bar announced on its Instagram page that it would temporarily close while the LAPD continues its investigation and “to further heighten” the bar’s security:
“When we reopen we will do so safely, responsibly and honoring what we all love about [the Holiday Bar],” the post reads in part. “We will not let one bar apple stop our community.”
The Holiday Bar opened in 2019 at the former site of La Cita, a bar where one of Boyle Heights most notorious murders took place.
In 2001, the owner of La Cita was found stabbed to death at the bar; the murder was tied to the fatal shooting of a known gang member at the location a year before. A suspect in the case was identified and arrested in 2015.
This story was updated on August 31 to add new information on the suspect’s identity and on Sept. 1 to add statement from bar.
