Investigators traced a 20-year-old suspect from a fatal Arcadia shooting to a second gunfire scene about an hour later.
ARCADIA, Calif. — A homicide investigation spread across two Los Angeles County cities Thursday after a teenage girl was found fatally shot in an Arcadia residence and police later located the suspected gunman in Pasadena, where authorities said he suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The sequence unfolded over roughly an hour and drew officers from Arcadia and Pasadena into separate scenes before the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau took the lead in investigating the girl’s death. Authorities identified the suspect as 20-year-old Paul Anthony Cruz Jr. and said he had been dating the teenage victim. Her name has not been released.
Arcadia police responded at about 11 a.m. to the 800 block of West Huntington Drive after receiving a report that a man inside a residence had fired a gun. Officers arrived to find the juvenile victim with a gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Cruz had already left, according to authorities.
The Sheriff’s Department later said Cruz had forced his way into the Arcadia residence before the shooting. Investigators have not disclosed what happened immediately before the gunfire, how Cruz traveled from Arcadia to Pasadena or what information allowed officers to locate him there. Authorities also have not announced a motive.
About an hour after the Arcadia shooting, police activity developed near South Arroyo Parkway and East Glenarm Street in Pasadena. The Sheriff’s Department said Pasadena officers were preparing to contact Cruz when he sustained a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was transported from the scene to a hospital.
The Pasadena incident unfolded in a commercial area where workers and other bystanders were nearby. Authorities secured the area as officers investigated the second shooting and worked to establish its connection to the Arcadia homicide. The two scenes were treated as part of the same developing investigation after Cruz was identified as the suspect in the girl’s death.
Officials gave conflicting information about Cruz’s medical condition. The Sheriff’s Department reported that he remained in critical condition, while Pasadena city spokesperson Lisa Derderian told ABC7 that Cruz had died after being transported. No later official statement reviewed Friday morning had resolved that discrepancy, making it unclear which account reflected his current condition.
The conflicting reports were significant because Cruz’s medical status could affect the next stages of the investigation. Authorities had not announced criminal charges, and no court proceedings had been publicly identified. Investigators were continuing to gather evidence from both locations and reconstruct the events between the Arcadia shooting and the Pasadena encounter.
The Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau remained responsible for the homicide investigation Friday. Police had not released the teenage victim’s identity, a suspected motive or additional details about the events inside the Arcadia residence.
With evidence spread across two cities and Cruz’s condition still subject to conflicting official accounts, investigators were continuing to establish a complete timeline and determine the circumstances surrounding the girl’s killing.
Author note: Last updated October 23, 2026.