Teen Girl Mourned After Apartment Complex Shooting

The shooter fled on foot. He was described as a male Hispanic in his 20s.

Relatives of a 15-year-old girl mourned the teen's loss one night after she gunned down just months after moving to Los Angeles.

The shooting happened in the 11900 block of South Wilmington Avenue in unincorporated Los Angeles about 11 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

The teen, identified as Yoana Espinosa, was standing in the stairwell of the apartment complex when the gunman shot her once in the chest.

The shooter fled on foot. He was described as a heavyset Hispanic man in his 20s wearing a grey hooded sweatshirt and denim shorts.

Some of the girl's relatives drove six hours to get to the memorial site.

"She was just like any other girl. She was just living her life," said the Espinosa's aunt, Suri Cuervo. "I don't know if it was in a good way or a bad way."

Cuervo said Espinosa was living with her relatives in San Francisco until four months ago, when she came to Los Angeles.

Neighbors told NBC4 that they don't believe the girl lived at the apartment complex, but that they did recognize her as someone who visited often.

The teen died at the hospital.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact the LA County Sheriff’s Department’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500.
 

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