Mina Kurdian, a 15-year-old girl described by her grandfather as a “beautiful girl inside and outside,” lived with her mother and younger sister in Arcadia, California. A former student in the Arcadia Unified School District, Mina was remembered by neighbors as part of a close family. Her mother was known as a wonderful, hardworking woman dedicated to her two children. Mina had been in a relationship with 20-year-old Paul Anthony Cruz Jr.
for a few months, and neighbors often saw the young couple together, noting that Cruz seemed polite and that they appeared to get along well. However, according to Mina's family, she had ended the relationship several weeks before her death.
On the morning of Thursday, October 22, 2026, a disturbance shattered the quiet of the apartment complex in the 800 block of West Huntington Drive. Just after 11 a.m., neighbors reported hearing shouting and an argument. According to some reports, Cruz left the apartment, then returned with a weapon and forced his way inside through a sliding glass door. Mina’s family stated she was in the shower when Cruz broke into the bathroom and shot her in the head. Her mother was in the home at the time. A neighbor told reporters they heard a woman screaming and asking for an ambulance, sounding "like it was a mom for sure." When Arcadia Police Department officers arrived, they found Mina with a gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
After the shooting, Cruz fled the residence, prompting a search by law enforcement. About an hour later, officers with the Pasadena Police Department located him in a Petco parking lot approximately five miles away, near the corner of South Arroyo Parkway and East Glenarm Street. Investigators from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department stated that as Pasadena officers were preparing to make contact with him, Cruz sustained a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Witnesses from a nearby auto body shop heard the shot and saw Cruz lying face down before police moved in and handcuffed him. He was transported to a local hospital in critical condition.
The investigation into the murder-suicide attempt was led by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau, with assistance from the Arcadia and Pasadena police departments. The area in the Pasadena shopping center where Cruz shot himself was blocked off with crime scene tape as investigators collected evidence. At the Arcadia apartment, detectives interviewed witnesses and gathered evidence to build their homicide case against Cruz. Authorities did not immediately release a motive, but were investigating the incident as an act of domestic violence. It was not publicly known if there had been any prior domestic violence reports or restraining orders related to the couple's relationship.
The violent death of the teenager shocked the community. Neighbors expressed their disbelief, with one remarking, "You never know. You never know who you're with." Another neighbor questioned the age difference in the relationship, stating, "If you're a 20-year-old man, I mean, you don't have business with a 15-year-old. I'm sorry. That's just the way I see it." Mina's grandfather, Nick Eftekhari, expressed his regret, saying he had only recently become aware of the relationship and would have tried to stop it earlier. The Arcadia Unified School District issued a statement confirming that Mina was a former student and expressed their condolences, saying, "Our thoughts remain with everyone affected by this devastating tragedy."
As of October 2026, the investigation was ongoing. Paul Anthony Cruz Jr. remained hospitalized under police custody while detectives prepared to file formal criminal charges. Authorities urged anyone with information about the shooting to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500. Anonymous tips could also be submitted to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
