Two Jamaican nationals arrested in connection with a weekend mass shooting at a South Los Angeles party that left four people dead have been released from custody without charges being filed, authorities said Wednesday.
Mowayne McKay, 33, and Deigo Reid, 25, were released from jail around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to sheriff’s inmate records.
The Los Angeles Police Department declined comment on the case. A spokeswoman for the District Attorney’s Office called it an “ongoing investigation.”
The gunfire erupted about 12:30 a.m. Saturday in the area of Rimpau and Jefferson boulevards, where officers responded to a “shots fired” call at a birthday party attended by about 50 adults, said Lt. Chuck Springer of the LAPD’s Southwest Station.
The party was taking place at a private residence out of which the owner runs a catering business and, on Saturdays, operates an informal Jamaican eatery, authorities said.
McKay and Reid were arrested Saturday morning by homicide detectives — Reid at 2:50 a.m. and McKay at 4:50 a.m., according to sheriff’s inmate records.
They were found at area hospitals, where they had gone to be treated for gunshot wounds, and were booked on suspicion of murder at the Los Angeles Police Department’s 77th Street Station. The men initially were held in lieu of $2 million bail each, but they were released with no bail posted, sheriff’s inmate records show.
Investigators said it appeared that a dispute — possibly over a drug deal gone awry — broke out between one man and two others, one of whom produced a handgun and fatally shot him.
Immediately following the first shooting, shots were fired indiscriminately into the crowd, and there appeared to be some return fire from other party guests, according to police.
A total of 15 people were shot — nine males and six females. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics pronounced three victims dead at the scene. A fourth victim died at a hospital, said Los Angeles police Officer Irma Mota.
The victims’ names were being withheld by the coroner’s office, which said there was a “security hold” on the case that prevented information from being released.
Detectives from the LAPD’s Criminal Gang Homicide Division have asked for the public’s help in the investigation. Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call detectives David Dilkes or Isidro Soto at (323) 786- 5110.
