Long Beach
Police Department
400 W. Broadway
Long Beach, CA 90802
(562) 570-5273
562.570.5273
LBPDPIO@longbeach.gov
UPDATE 9/13/2024
Booking photo of suspect Troy Lamar Fox
(Click on image to enlarge)
Homicide Detectives have arrested the suspect believed to be responsible for the March 26, 2024 murder of Briana Soto, a 17-year-old resident of Long Beach.
By following their investigative leads, including DNA, video and cellular phone evidence, detectives identified Troy Lamar Fox, a 34-year-old resident of Long Beach, as being responsible for the murder. At the time of his arrest, Fox was in the custody of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department on an unrelated weapons violation.
During their investigation detectives additionally identified Fox as the suspect involved in two additional incidents –
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On April 9, 2024 officers responded to the 1300 block of Pine Avenue regarding a shots call. During this incident, a suspect discharged a firearm in the direction of three juveniles and one adult in a vehicle. The suspect responsible is believed to be Fox.
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On July 7, 2024, officers responded to the area of 14th Street and Pine Avenue regarding a report of firearms inside of a vehicle. During the incident, officers located Fox and a juvenile suspect and later learned they were both prohibited possessors. Two firearms were recovered on the suspects and four firearms were recovered from the vehicle.
It was determined Fox was on Post Release Community Supervision (PRCS) for being a prohibited possessor in possession of a firearm and had an outstanding warrant for his arrest issued in November 2023 for violation of his PRCS terms.
On Sept. 10, 2024, search warrants were conducted in connection with the murder and attempt murder investigations. During those search warrants, an additional loaded and unregistered assault rifle was recovered from a residence in Long Beach. However, detectives believe it to be a different rifle than used in the April 9, 2024 shooting.
On Sept. 11, 2024, detectives presented evidence to a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge and obtained an arrest warrant for Fox for the murder of Briana Soto and the attempted murder which took place on April 9, 2024.
On Sept. 13, 2024, officers took custody of Fox from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and booked him into the Long Beach City Jail pursuant to his warrant. Fox is currently being held on $2,000,000 bail.
“Briana Soto was just 17 years old when she was tragically taken away from her family by a violent individual willing to commit such a reprehensible and brazen act of violence,” said Chief of Police Wally Hebeish. “Briana’s death has left her family devastated and has impacted our department immensely. The detectives, officers, and professional staff assigned to this investigation have utilized every available resource to identify and apprehend this suspect, who we believe is responsible for Briana’s murder, as well as two other gun-related crimes in our community. This suspect has demonstrated a willingness to inflict harm on others and we will be working closely with our partners throughout the criminal justice system to ensure Briana and her family receive the justice they deserve.”
Detectives will present their case to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for filing consideration in the coming days.
We urge anyone with information to contact Homicide Detectives Ethan Shear or Chasen Contreras at (562) 570-7244. Anonymous tips may be submitted through "LA Crime Stoppers" by calling 800-222-TIPS (8477), downloading the "P3 Tips" app to your smartphone (available at the Apple app store or Google Play), or by visiting www.lacrimestoppers.org.
UPDATE 4/30/2024
Homicide detectives are seeking the public’s help to identify the suspect responsible for the murder of 17-year-old victim, Briana Soto.
Today, during a press conference, the Department released video of the suspect responsible for this murder. This video shows the suspect walking in the area prior to the murder. The suspect appears to be a male, unknown age, dressed in all dark attire with a mask over his face. Detectives believe the suspect ran away from the area immediately after the shooting.
Detectives believe someone knows who this suspect is or may recall a person that was acting unusual on the night of Tuesday, March 26th. We urge anyone with information to call Homicide detectives at 562.570.7244 or submit an anonymous tip via LA Crime Stoppers.
“We are requesting our community’s help to identify the suspect responsible for committing this horrendous crime,” said Chief of Police Wally Hebeish. “To Briana’s family – we will never stop working to find the person who took Briana away from you.”
We urge anyone with information to contact Homicide Detectives Ethan Shear or Chasen Contreras at (562) 570-7244. Anonymous tips may be submitted through "LA Crime Stoppers" by calling 800-222-TIPS (8477), downloading the "P3 Tips" app to your smartphone (available at the Apple app store or Google Play), or by visiting www.lacrimestoppers.org.
Photograph of Murder Victim
(Click on image to enlarge)
Photograph of Murder Suspect
(Click on image to enlarge)
Originally Published 3/30/2024
Homicide detectives are investigating the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old girl that occurred on March 26, 2024.
On March 26, 2024 at approximately 8:26 p.m., officers responded to the area of 11th Street and Lewis Avenue regarding a shooting. Upon arrival, officers found a 17-year-old female victim with a gunshot wound to the upper body. They immediately began rendering medical aid until the arrival of Long Beach Fire Department personnel, who transported the victim to the hospital in critical condition.
On March 30, 2024, the victim succumbed to her injuries. Her identity is being withheld due to her age.
On the evening of the incident, Homicide detectives responded to the scene due to the victim’s life-threatening injuries. The preliminary investigation revealed the victim was walking down the street when she was approached by the suspect(s) and a shooting occurred. The motive for the shooting is under investigation.
We urge anyone with information to contact Homicide Detectives Ethan Shear or Chasen Contreras at (562) 570-7244. Anonymous tips may be submitted through "LA Crime Stoppers" by calling 800-222-TIPS (8477), downloading the "P3 Tips" app to your smartphone (available at the Apple app store or Google Play), or by visiting www.lacrimestoppers.org.