2 teenagers fatally shot at L.A. Boys & Girls Club carnival in Lincoln Heights

Two teenage boys were fatally shot Sunday night at a Los Angeles Boys & Girls Club carnival in Lincoln Heights, according to authorities.

The boys were approached by a man while they were attending the carnival in the 2700 block of North Broadway just before the shooting, the Los Angeles Police Department said.

The boys were identified as Javier Mejia and Winfield Lee, both 17, according to the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.

The man approached the boys, fired at them multiple times and then ran away, police said. The shooting was reported shortly after 9 p.m. The Los Angeles Fire Department responded to the scene, where the boys died, according to the LAPD. One of the victims died on the sidewalk a few yards from a carnival ride, according to video from OnScene.TV.

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The boys were approached by a man Sunday at the carnival in the 2700 block of North Broadway just before the shooting, the LAPD said.

The fair was hosted by the Los Angeles Boys & Girls Club, according to its website.

“The Los Angeles Boys & Girls Club is devastated by the tragic shooting that took place and resulted in the death of two teens,” Juana Lambert, the Los Angeles Boys & Girls Club’s executive director, said in a statement. “Our role in the community is to serve children, teens and families and we send our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the deceased during this unimaginably difficult time.”

The group said it is cooperating with the police investigation and working with schools to offer support.

It’s unclear whether the shooting was gang-related, the LAPD said.

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In an interview with OnScene.TV, festival-goer Merilyn Itzeb described seeing a fight at a nearby gas station before the shooting. She said she heard gunshots and saw a crowd of people running, and then saw a body on the ground.

Maria Elias, whose flower shop has been on North Broadway for nearly two decades, said she was closing the store Sunday night when she heard gunshots. When she came out, the shooting had stopped. She said she saw a girl and a boy walking on the sidewalk, and the boy was asking for help. She was unsure whether he was shot but then saw him fall to the ground, Elias said.

On Monday morning, she stopped by a memorial set up for one of the teenagers. She broke down.

“Que triste,” Elias said in Spanish. “He was walking and fighting for his life. Then he fell. I saw him there, just there, and someone was giving him CPR.”

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Several other people stopped by the memorial of votive candles and flowers Monday morning. Elias promised to bring flowers. She cried again, and a man walking by with a cane sobbed with her.

Friends lighted candles. They said that Winfield, who was also known as Michael or “Saner,” was a senior at a local Alliance charter school. Several of his friends signed the candles with “Long Live Saner.”

“He was a good kid,” said a 19-year-old named Oscar, who didn’t want to give his last name. “I knew him since middle school. I watched him grow up.”

Oscar and other mourners at the memorial said the teenager was not in a gang.

Representatives with the gang intervention nonprofit Soledad Enrichment Action left candles. Mirna Romero, chief financial officer with the organization, said she was not aware of whether the boy was a client with its programs. The group has an office across the street from Lincoln High.