Suspect Sought in Fatal Stabbing on Hollywood Subway

Authories are searching for a skateboarder who allegedly stabbed a chain-wielding man to death Friday on a Red Line train in Hollywood.

The stabbing, believed to have been captured on video, occurred between the Hollywood/Western station and the Hollywood/Vine station at about 7:30 p.m. Friday, police said.

Los Angeles Times music reporter Todd Martens said he witnessed the incident. Martens told the Times he saw a chain-wielding man stabbed by a man with a knife.

In his bag, the suspect, who appeared to be in his 20s, had what looked like a new blue shirt, and two other passengers urged him to change out of his bloodied clothes, according to Martens.

The assailant, described as being of Asian descent with acne scars on his face, put on a new shirt and stuffed the bloody one into his bag, bolting out of the door at the Hollywood/Vine Station.

Presumably, the crime was caught on Metro video. "There are cameras on the trains,'' sheriff's Sgt. Harry Drucker said. "That footage feeds into a hard drive and our homicide detectives will be requesting a download of that video from the Metro people.''

The killing was the first on the Red Line since it opened in 1993. The slain man's name was being withheld pending notification of his next of kin. Sheriff's deputies described him as a Hispanic man in his 50s. Security on Metro buses and rail is handled by the sheriff's department, and the investigation is being handled by sheriff's homicide detectives.

Anyone with more information about the killing is asked to call detectives at 323-890-5500.

— City News Service