Man Shot Outside Torrance Chuck E. Cheese

TORRANCE (CBS) — A man shot several times in a possibly gang-related attack outside a Chuck E. Cheese restaurant in Torrance was hospitalized in critical condition Sunday, but police said he had stable vital signs.

Police declined to identify the victim who was shot about 7:40 p.m. Saturday outside the eatery in the 16900 block of Prairie Avenue.

Arriving officers found one man shot "numerous times in the upper torso" and about 200 people milling around, Torrance police Sgt. Jeremiah Hart said.

Potential witnesses "drove away in multiple directions," Hart said, leaving investigators to piece together the story.

Hart said eight to 10 men believed to be gang members got into an argument.

"People say they were shouting, then started to fight, then during that fight someone pulled out a firearm and started shooting," he said.

It was unclear why the men were in the parking lot.

"It is not a place you would associate as dangerous," Hart said. "It is a place for families and kids."

Anyone with more information about the shooting was urged to call detectives at (310) 618-5570.

(©2010 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)