Family Of Barber Gunned Down Outside Shop Believe It's Case Of Mistaken Identity
HAWTHORNE (CBSLA) -- Paul "PJ" Foster had no enemies, he was a hard-working dad. He worked at a Hawthorne barber shop for more than a decade.
Friends and family -- as well as police -- are at a loss to explain why someone would shoot Foster and another man Friday outside that barbershop.
Foster, 51, was killed. The other victim -- a customer -- was also taken to a nearby hospital.
A deputy on scene at the County Sheriff's office Saturday evening told CBS2/KCAL9's Laurie Perez that investigators are trying to piece together what happened but so far, no suspects have emerged and there hasn't been an arrest.
Perez said that is adding to the heartbreak that friends and family are feeling with Foster's loss.
They stood outside the barbershop Foster worked. They shared hugs and tears. They also told stories about him as a leader. He was the older cousin who always set good examples.
"Work hard every day and what you work for, you earn what you work for," said his cousin Chaz Foster.
He was the barber who before long also became a good friend.
"He would stand out here and say hi to anybody who passes by," says friend Derrick Thomas.
Foster was also a father who picked his son up from school every day. His son sobbed at tonight's vigil.
Perez also spoke to Foster's shattered wife. She told Perez about the moment she had to tell her son his father was gone.
"It was the worst moment of my life. We'll never be the same again," says Vielka Bush Foster.
Some of the mourners told Perez they are tired of the memorial candles, the RIP posters, the T-shirt tributes -- every loss hurts but what hurts more is seems is when the victim was as beloved as Foster was.
That is a reason friends and family believe the shooting has to be a case of mistaken identity.-
"Whoever they're looking for, this is not him, it wasn't him, it would never be him," says friend Jean Paul.
Deputies said Foster and the customer were shot around 11 a.m. Friday. Foster was later declared dead at the hospital. The other victim remains hospitalized.
Foster's wife says she is praying for justice for her husband and peace in the community.
"And I don't want to see any other black boys growing up without a father," Bush-Foster says, "and I'm so sad, I'm so sad for my son."
The other victim has not been identified. He was last listed in stable condition.
