A fatal shooting occurred Thursday evening in Mar Vista, police say. According to a witness, a man with a head wound was taken off a Culver CityBus following the shooting.
Multiple bullets were fired in the incident and a man in his 40s was killed, according to police, who said the suspected gunman was at large.
The incident took place around 5:15 p.m. near the intersection of South Centinela and Mitchell avenues, said Officer Charles Miller, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department.
Multiple outlets have reported that the individual killed was the driver of the bus. Besides age and gender, police declined to share details about the victim to The Times on Thursday night.
“This loss is deeply personal for our Culver CityBus team and will be felt across our entire City organization,” Culver City Mayor Freddy Puza said in a statement shared with The Times. He called the incident a “senseless act of violence.”
Katty Garcia, who lives near the scene of the shooting, told The Times that she heard three shots and came outside to investigate, then subsequently saw the man pulled from the bus.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Garcia said.
She had gone outside expecting to see a car crash. Instead, she was greeted by a scene that “didn’t look good at all” — with medics performing CPR on a man who had been shot in the head, she said.
According to police, the suspect was a white male who had a bike and fled the scene.
The victim was transported to a local hospital and pronounced dead.
The case is being handled by the department’s West Bureau Homicide.
Officials with Culver CityBus could not immediately be reached for comment.
Puza said Culver CityBus service will be suspended throughout the weekend to allow the transit agency’s team time to grieve.
“Our hearts are with the family, loved ones and colleagues during this devastating time,” Puza said.
