Man Arrested For Reportedly Firing Shots From Apartment Balcony In Hollywood
HOLLYWOOD (CBSLA/AP) — Police Monday arrested a man who was allegedly firing gunshots from an apartment balcony, prompting evacuations and street closures in Hollywood.
Construction workers on Sunset Boulevard called police at 3:30 p.m., claiming someone was firing from a third-floor apartment on the 6600 block of Leland Avenue, according to Hollywood police. The apartment complex is located near Sunset Boulevard and Cherokee Avenue.
"I saw the cops stop in the middle of the street, get down with M1's and shotguns and started to run," said Brian Hernandez, one of many nearby residents told to evacuate.
Police set up a perimeter, closing surrounding streets and evacuating nearby homes and businesses.
Ninety minutes later, police apprehended a suspect, described as a man in his 20s. The suspected gunman had been barricaded inside the apartment. He along with another man and a woman were taken into police custody.
"They caught him and he was upset, so he said he's got a fun house, you know, a dynamite, booby-trapped house with all the stuff for the cops to go into," said Leslie Borchard, a resident who was evacuated during the upheaval.
Investigators believe the gunshot came from a sawed-off shotgun they found in the apartment. They also reportedly found another shotgun and a stick of dynamite, but those turned out to be replicas similar to movie props, Lopez said.
There were no injuries.
It was unlikely that the suspected shooter, who has a police record, intended to harm anyone, Lopez said.
"Based on his intoxicated state, I think he just got drunk and perhaps wasn't using the best sense at that time," Lopez said. "I don't think he wanted to shoot anybody."
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