In the summer of 2026, a grim discovery was made inside a Hollywood apartment that left a community in shock and a family searching for answers. On the night of Tuesday, July 28th, officers from the Los Angeles Police Department responded to a welfare check at a residence in the 1900 block of Wilcox Avenue. A concerned family member had prompted the call after receiving an unusual text message. Gaining entry with a manager's key around 11:30 p.m., the officers were met with a tragic scene.
Inside the apartment, they found the bodies of three adult men, all of whom had been fatally shot. One of the victims was identified as Jack Cartagena, a 44-year-old White/Caucasian male. The other two men were later identified as 50-year-old Jeremy Badeker and 33-year-old Michael Bogacz.
The Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner formally pronounced Jack Cartagena dead on Wednesday, July 29, 2026. The cause of death for all three men was determined to be multiple gunshot wounds, and the manner of death was ruled a homicide. The case was immediately taken over by the LAPD's Robbery-Homicide Division, with the Homicide Special Section leading the investigation into the triple homicide. The term "private residence" used by the medical examiner indicated that the location of the discovery was not the decedent's own home. Details surrounding the events that led to the shooting have been slow to emerge, with investigators releasing very little information to the public in the initial days following the discovery. Reports from neighbors in the apartment building suggested that they may have heard gunshots over the weekend prior to the bodies being found, but these claims could not be immediately confirmed by law enforcement.
As of early August 2026, the investigation into the murders of Jack Cartagena, Jeremy Badeker, and Michael Bogacz is still very much active and ongoing. The Los Angeles Police Department has not yet publicly identified any suspects or made any arrests in connection with the case. Detectives are urging anyone with information that could shed light on this triple homicide to come forward and contact the Robbery-Homicide Division. Friends and family of the victims have taken to social media to post tributes and mourn their loss. The case remains a high priority for the LAPD as they work to piece together the circumstances that led to this tragic loss of three lives in the heart of Hollywood. The lack of any publicly identified suspects or a clear motive has left the community with a sense of unease and many unanswered questions surrounding the violent deaths of these three men.
