Kent Raymond Jacobs was 65 years old when he died on Sunday, July 18, 2021, in Gardena, a city in the South Bay area of Los Angeles County. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died after sustaining blunt force trauma near 2201 W. Redondo Beach Boulevard. His death was ruled a homicide and investigated by the Gardena Police Department.
Jacobs was a white man who had just reached retirement age, at a point in life when many people are looking forward to slower days, time with family and the rewards of decades of work. No obituary, memorial page or family fundraiser for him could be found for this story, and no news outlet reported on his death. The Gardena Police Department, which posts news about many serious crimes on its social media pages, did not release any statement about his case that could be found.
The address recorded for his death is that of a Ralphs supermarket on Redondo Beach Boulevard, a busy store that stays open late into the night. That places his death at or near a public place where shoppers, employees and passing drivers come and go, and where parking lots and storefronts are often covered by security cameras. But how he was hurt has never been made public. It is not known whether he was attacked inside the store, in the parking lot or on the sidewalk, whether he was robbed, whether there was an argument, or whether he was struck by a person or by a vehicle. Nothing published says whether police identified a suspect, or whether any video from the area was ever released to the public.
Gardena, a city of about 60,000 people, is known for its large Japanese American community, its card clubs and its mix of homes, small businesses and light industry. Redondo Beach Boulevard is one of its main east-west streets, lined with shopping centers, restaurants and gas stations. The city has its own police department, which handles homicides inside city limits.
His death came during a violent year across Los Angeles County. The city of Los Angeles recorded 397 homicides in 2021, the most since 2006, according to the Los Angeles Times, and killings also rose in many surrounding cities. Most victims were young men who were shot. The death of a 65-year-old man from blunt force injuries outside a neighborhood supermarket is far less common, and it is the kind of case that would ordinarily draw attention. His did not.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Kent Raymond Jacobs could be found in news archives or public records. More than four years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who was at or near the Ralphs on West Redondo Beach Boulevard on July 18, 2021, or who knew him, may hold information that matters. Tips can be given to the Gardena Police Department at 310-217-9600, or anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
