Los Angeles County Sheriff’s homicide detectives were on scene of a shooting in unincorporated Malibu Tuesday afternoon, following a report of a victim being shot near Piuma Road and Costa Del Sol Way, with a call coming in at 2:29 p.m.
At 7:40 p.m., the death was ruled “an apparent suicide,” according to Deputy Nevarro with the LA Sheriff’s Department. The deceased was a white male adult, Nevarro added.
At around 4:30 p.m., homicide detectives were dispatched to investigate the shooting, after the victim was declared dead.
“People die all the time, but if the homicide bureau believes there was a criminal that was involved, they will roll out [more information],” Deputy Nevarro with the LA Sheriff’s told The Malibu Times around 4:05 p.m. Tuesday.
Malibu resident Maggie Karpuk described nonstop helicopters flying over her house near Rambla Pacifico and Las Flores Canyon Road on Tuesday afternoon.
“It kept going and going, so after an hour, I called the fire camp. They said, ‘It’s not us, call the sheriff’s department,’” Karpuk said in a phone interview with The Malibu Times.
When Karpuk called the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station, she was informed that there was a shooting.
“We’re not used to that in this neighborhood,” Karpuk said.
Though there was a lot of police activity, both in the sky above Malibu and along Piuma Road, sheriff’s officials said they were not aware of any threat to others in the area. They also requested anyone with information to come forward to authorities.
“I can understand people’s concern. They want to know why there’s men in tan and green who have probably contained their neighbor’s house. Obviously we want to make sure the evidence is not jeopardized,” Nevarro said.
“Obviously, if they have any information regarding the incident, we want them to speak to the deputies that are there,” Nevarro added. She would not, at the time, give a definitive answer as to whether or not the shooting death would be investigated as a homicide.
“Up until our homicide investigators get there and walk the scene and do what they do best … it would be premature for me to tell you, ‘Oh, it’s this,’ or, ‘Oh, it’s that,’” Nevarro said. It took LASD homicide detectives about three hours to come to the conclusion over the apparent cause of death.
Following the sheriff’s investigation, Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner – Coroner was in charge of the case, Nevarro said.