Israel Ramirez-Perez was 22 years old when he died on Tuesday, March 8, 2016, in the San Gabriel area. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds in the 9100 block of Huntington Drive, in an area the Los Angeles Times listed as East San Gabriel. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department case.
He was found by people who knew him, steps from home. According to the Los Angeles Times Homicide Report, family members called the Sheriff's Department at 10:43 p.m. after they found him lying in the driveway of their apartment complex with a stab wound in his upper torso, said Sgt. Guillermo Morales. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 11 p.m., according to coroner's records.
Lt. Joe Mendoza told the Times that neighbors reported hearing an altercation outside before he was stabbed, but that investigators did not have any suspect information.
He described how the family learned what had happened: "Someone came to the family and said, 'He's lying in the driveway,'" Mendoza said. "When his mom and family came out, he was unresponsive."
Investigators were still trying to find a motive, Morales said, and he offered a short portrait of the young man. "He had just been outside his home, enjoying life," Morales said. "And by all accounts, he was a great guy." ABC7 Los Angeles reported the killing the next day, confirming that deputies were called at 10:44 p.m. and found him dead at the scene, and that detectives were investigating the circumstances of his death.
Those few lines are nearly all that is publicly known. The record does not say who he had been with that evening, what the altercation was about, or whether the person who stabbed him was a stranger or someone he knew.
Beyond what the Times and ABC7 reported, almost nothing about Israel Ramirez-Perez has been made public. No obituary, memorial page or family fundraiser could be found for this story. Israel Ramirez Perez is a common name in Mexico and across Latin America, and searches turn up many other men with no connection to this case. He clearly had a mother and family who were close by, and friends who considered him a great guy, but little of his life has entered the public record.
East San Gabriel is an unincorporated community in the western San Gabriel Valley, next to the city of San Gabriel. It is a largely residential area of houses and apartment complexes, and Huntington Drive is one of the region's major boulevards.
Hundreds of people are killed in Los Angeles County every year, and a large share of those killings end without an arrest.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Israel Ramirez-Perez could be found in news archives or public records. More than nine years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who lived in or near the apartment complexes on the 9100 block of Huntington Drive in March 2016, who heard the argument that night, or who knew Israel Ramirez-Perez, may hold information that could help detectives. Even a small detail, such as a name overheard, a vehicle seen nearby or a conversation remembered, can help detectives move a case forward. Anyone with information can contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
