Michael Bogacz was a 33-year-old White/Caucasian man and Los Angeles resident whose death became part of a triple-homicide investigation inside a Hollywood apartment in July 2026. Although his body was discovered on July 28, investigators determined that Bogacz and the two other victims, Jeremiah Badeker and Jack Cartegena, had been killed several days earlier, during the early morning hours of July 24.
The three victims and the man authorities later identified as the alleged killer, Patrick Kevin Spurlock, had gathered inside an apartment in the 1900 block of North Wilcox Avenue in Hollywood.
According to Los Angeles police and prosecutors, an argument or other altercation developed inside the apartment. Authorities allege that Spurlock produced a firearm and forced Bogacz, Badeker and Cartegena onto the floor at gunpoint. While the victims were lying on the ground, Spurlock allegedly opened fire, shooting them numerous times at close range. Investigators have not publicly disclosed what caused the confrontation, and police have not explained how Spurlock knew Bogacz or the other victims. No motive has been publicly established.
The killings remained undiscovered for several days. On the evening of July 28, police were sent to the Wilcox Avenue apartment for a welfare check and found the three victims dead inside. One report said the welfare check followed concerns raised by a relative after a sister of one of the victims received a message from an unknown number stating that her brother was dead. A detective at the scene said all three victims had been shot, and authorities reported that no weapons were found inside the apartment. Police also said they did not believe the killings were gang-related.
The investigation eventually focused on Patrick Kevin Spurlock. Detectives located him in the 6600 block of Franklin Avenue, only a short distance from the apartment where the killings occurred, and took him into custody in mid-August. Official and court-related reports differ slightly on whether the arrest occurred August 13 or August 14, but authorities agree that Spurlock was booked on suspicion of murder and ordered held without bail. The Los Angeles Police Department’s Robbery-Homicide Division investigated the killings and presented the case to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Prosecutors subsequently charged Spurlock with three counts of murder in connection with the deaths of Bogacz, Badeker and Cartegena. The case also includes allegations that he personally and intentionally used and discharged a firearm during the killings, that he committed multiple murders, and that he has prior serious or violent felony convictions qualifying under California’s three-strikes law. Prosecutors have additionally alleged the special circumstance of murder with a prior murder conviction. Those allegations substantially increase the potential punishment if he is ultimately convicted.
Spurlock had already served a lengthy prison sentence for a previous killing. He was convicted of second-degree murder in Washington state in 2005 after fatally shooting DeWayne Williams during a 2003 confrontation in Cowlitz County. He served approximately 17 years in prison before being released from the Washington State Department of Corrections in 2022. Prosecutors specifically cited that prior murder conviction when filing the new Los Angeles charges.
The criminal proceedings moved forward during August 2026. Spurlock pleaded not guilty to the three murder charges. Questions concerning his competency to stand trial were also considered, and on August 21 he was found mentally competent to proceed with the case. He remained jailed without bail while awaiting further court proceedings.
If Spurlock is convicted as charged, prosecutors have said he could face life imprisonment without the possibility of parole or potentially the death penalty. As of the latest publicly reported information located, no trial verdict or conviction had been announced in the Bogacz case, and the prosecution remained pending. The charges against Spurlock remain allegations unless and until they are proven in court.
