A man suspected of trying to steal a catalytic converter was stabbed to death by a resident early Friday morning in South El Monte, authorities said.
Two other suspects fled. Deputies detained the resident for questioning, Sheriff’s Lt. Mike Gomez said.
The coroner’s office has not yet identified the dead man, who Gomez described as between 45 to 50 years old.
The suspect, stabbed in his upper torso, was pronounced dead at the scene by the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
The confrontation was reported in the 1100 block of Thienes Avenue at 2:37 a.m. The resident had heard noises coming from the front of his house, took a kitchen knife and went out, Gomez said. “He is confronted by two to three individuals,” the lieutenant said, adding that the suspects were swinging what may have been the handle of a car jack at the resident.
Deputies found a man lying in a driveway near an older model Honda Accord with tools around him, Gomez said. The two other suspects left in a small compact car, last seen heading east on Thienes Avenue, he said.
He did not have detailed descriptions of the two suspects.
There were two other people inside the home at the time, Gomez said, but he didn’t know their relationship to the resident.
Anyone with information about the case can call the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Anonymous tipsters can call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or go to lacrimestoppers.org
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