Prior Cold Case
"It was a year ago today," said Det. Efren Gutierrez, pleading for help in the investigation of Sofia Gomez's murder. The case has been on his mind for months, a standout for its brutality and purposelessness. "She was just a little old lady. There was no rhyme or reason," he said.
Gomez, 92, was a neighborhood fixture, still spry enough to walk the streets for exercise in the mornings, picking up recyclables for extra cash as she went along. On Feb. 2., 2006, she left home dressed in a layer of clothes topped with a red jacket, and pushing a cart to carry cans and bottles, as was her routine.
Somebody stabbed her repeatedly and left her body in front of an apartment complex at 9034 Willis Ave. just south of Nordhoff Street and west of Van Nuys Boulevard. Gutierrez seeks anyone who may have seen anything in the area. Anonymous tips welcome. Call (818) 838-9948.
very good i like it keep up the! good work!
Posted by: carlos | February 12, 2007 at 09:27 PM
Well... it seems the majority of these killings are gang related. Sooner or later maybe if we let them be to their own devices, they'll kill each other off (all of them) and we will have less to worry about in LA. Rival gang members can rid us of more gangs that the city of LA can thru any "clean-up" efforts, and it costs us less... just logical. Let them continue I say. Only prosecute the killings of innocent bystanders. If you're a gang member and you kill another gang member, I say you let the perp back out on the streets but only with the obligation that another gang member has to be killed within 30 days. We shouldhave them all gone inside of 24 months with this new program. And then our police officers can work at protecting us tax-paying, law-abiding citizens instead of wasting their time on the gang thugs!
Posted by: Just Logical | February 17, 2007 at 06:24 AM
These young men should be sent to Iraq to fight the war for us. They need something to work toward. Give them the chance and heroism they desire. Pack them up, send them, and I bet, they will win the war for us.
Posted by: MsE. | February 19, 2007 at 05:48 PM
This is horrific and totally unacceptable. Where are our government leaders--federal, county, local? Where are our foundation leaders? Where are our educational leaders" Where are our nonprofit leaders? Where are our parents? Where are our brothers and sisters? Where our our friends? Where is our community? Together, we could change this. It takes will and determination!
Posted by: Bill White | February 19, 2007 at 08:48 PM
instead of sending young men in iraq for oil to feed your "way of life"in an unwinnable war why not fight the real war inside america,before "spread democraty worldwide,start in your neighborhood,
Posted by: olivier | June 20, 2007 at 06:46 AM
This is to "Just Logical": What the hell are you thinking?!!! Do you really feel that your way is a LOGICAL way? That comment was the most ignorant, selfish and down right STUPID thing I've ever heard. It's like saying to get every one with AIDS and put them on an island so that it wouldn't spread. I understand that gang violence is out of control and needs to be stomped out somehow but come on! What if that thick headed gang-member was your brother or your son? Or if a family member of yours was killed because he/she was in a gang. Would you then think that the killer should be let out free to kill again? Not all gang members end up killing or being killed. I was an active member of a gang in my youth and learned the hard way to become a productive member of society. I learned the hard way by spending 8 years in prison but hey, I learned. Too many innocent people have died just because they were with the wrong crowd. We humans tend to make errors in our youth. There are those that belong in prison for life or the chair, but some gang members are only there to try and fit in with the crowd of the surroundings we call the neighborhood. Your idea of controlled chaos is the manifestations of a biased pea-brained simpleton. I put my mother through alot as a young adolesent but I didn't deserve to die for it. Under your law, I would not be here today!
Posted by: FranktheFrank | June 26, 2007 at 04:52 PM
Just Logical, The problem with your overly simplistic "soulution" is that gang members don't only kill other gang members. A lot of the time innocent bystanders fall victim to these gang members. To simply let gang members continue to do what they do and not try to prosecute them would only lead to more innocent victims dying. We can't just sit back and let these gang members go unprosecuted and we can't continue to allow them to terrorize communities.
Posted by: Ariana | September 20, 2007 at 05:36 PM
IT IS A SAD STATE OF AFFAIRS WHEN MURDERING OLDER ADULTS IS TARGETED BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE NOTHING ELSE TO DO
Posted by: Marilyn P. Antill | September 23, 2007 at 02:21 PM
I heard some new detectives got the case and found the killer. Good work guys!
Posted by: knows | November 14, 2008 at 02:03 PM
Rumor has it some new detectives took over the case and caught the killer, Way to go guys!
Posted by: Justthefacts | November 17, 2008 at 06:19 AM