LAPD releases video of Valentina Orellana Peralta shooting

• The LAPD published a video of the shooting that killed young Hispanic girl, Valentina Orellana Peralta.
• The police intervened in an incident inside a store and fired at the suspect, but one of the bullets fatally wounded the girl.
• The suspect was identified as Daniel Elena-López, a 24-year-old resident of the city of Los Angeles in California.

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) has released all of the information and video of the shooting that occurred on December 23 at the Burlington store in Hollywood. The shooting resulted in young 14-year-old Valentina Orellana Peralta’s death.

Valentina was in the changing room of a store, trying on some quinceanera dresses. While she was shopping, a man entered the establishment and attacked another customer. The police intervened and fired at the suspect. However, a stray bullet went through the dressing room wall killing the young girl.

Video of the shooting

The extensive video lasting more than 35 minutes includes the statement of Captain Stacy Spell. She confirms that the police are providing all the information they have, several calls to 911, and images of the shooting. The images were taken from different cameras inside the store and the body camera of the officer who fired.

On the morning of December 23, a man entered the Burlington store with a bicycle and began to act erratically, throwing items and waving his arms. At that point, calls were made to 911. The operator asked several questions about the suspect and immediately dispatched police officers to address the situation.

The man assaulted customers

The video shows the man assaulting a woman going down the escalator but she manages to escape from him. The attacker sees a second woman coming down as well and takes off his pants. His behavior continues to be completely inexplicable and inappropriate.

Police said the suspect left the store for a minute and a half. As the video shows, the man returns to the store and wanders around in his underwear. He surprises a shopper and begins beating her. He throws her onto the ground and continues to beat, kick, and even drag her through the store. At that point the officers arrive.

Blood everywhere

Four officers enter the store in search of the gunman. Three more follow to provide support. They look around the store for the attacker and when they find him they approach slowly. But they notice that there is blood everywhere. They quickly find the woman he had attacked lying on the ground covered in blood.

One of the officers shoots at the suspect who falls to the ground, wounded. Unfortunately, those shots also went through the dressing room wall where the young Hispanic girl, Valentina Orellana Peralta, was. The officers could not see her.

How did it all begin?

Police released the following statement with the video: «On December 23, 2021, around 11:45 a.m., North Hollywood officers responded to a radio call for an assault with a deadly weapon in progress on a business in the 12100 block of Victory Boulevard. While they went to the scene, the agents received several radio calls from the same place, where a possible shooting was taking place.»

«When the officers arrived at the scene, they started looking for the suspect. During that search, the agents located a woman who suffered several injuries and was bleeding. They found the suspect a short distance away, and a shooting occurred with an officer involved,» the police reported. This is consistent with the images. WATCH THE POLICE VIDEOS. SENSITIVE IMAGES ALERT.

What happened to the suspect?

The LAPD reported that the man died at the scene. «The suspect was shot and detained. The fire department paramedics responded and determined that the suspect had died at the scene,» the official report reads.

Later, the man was identified as Daniel Elena-López, a 24-year-old resident of Los Angeles, California. No further details about him were provided. Also, it has not been specified whether his attack was targeted or if he was under the influence of any substance.

What happened to Valentina Orellana Peralta?

The police report states that, «Unbeknownst to the officers, a 14-year-old girl was in a dressing room behind a wall, which was directly behind the suspect and out of the officers’ sight. She was in the dressing room with her mother when officers found the suspect and the shooting started.»

«During a search for additional suspects and victims, officers found the girl and discovered that she had been hit by bullets. She was pronounced dead at the scene. In this preliminary phase of the investigation, it is believed that the victim was hit by one of the bullets fired by an officer at the suspect.»

What happened to the officer who shot?

The LAPD confirmed to USA TODAY that the officer who fired the shot that killed the Hispanic girl has been placed on administrative leave. In addition, Police Chief Michel R. Moore lamented the fact, saying that, «This chaotic incident that resulted in the death of an innocent child is tragic and devastating for everyone involved.»

«I deeply regret the loss of this young woman’s life and I know that no words can ease the unimaginable pain of the family. My commitment is to carry out a thorough, complete, and transparent investigation into the circumstances that led to this tragedy and to provide the family and the public with as much information as possible,» he added.

How were the police justified?

«You can’t see inside the fitting rooms, and it just looks like a running wall of masonry,» they said at a news conference. Investigators do not yet know if the teenager was in the dressing room before the shooting began or if she ran there to hide.

Choi said authorities do not know the man’s motive or whether he knew the woman he assaulted at the store. Nicholas Prange, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department, said the woman suffered moderate to severe injuries and was taken to a hospital. She had injuries to her head, arms, and face.

What did the police find near the suspect?

Near the suspect, the police found a heavy padlock with a metal cable. They believed it could have been used in the attack. Spell said the injured woman was the victim in the report about the first attack. It was not clear at that time what weapon was used, authorities said.

The police had received calls alleging that the suspect was engaging in erratic behavior prior to the shooting incident. Imelda García said that her sister works in the store and was on her break when she heard gunshots, at which point everyone started to run. She said she spoke to her sister on the phone and she was fine, but she sounded «very nervous.» The police escorted people out of the store almost two hours after the shooting.

What was the girl doing in the dressing room?

LAPD Deputy Director Dominic Choi said at a press conference that the teen’s mother was in the dressing room when the bullet pierced the wall and struck the girl. He added: «You can’t see the inside of the dressing rooms, and it looks like a straight wall of drywall.»

Faced with this terrible fact, Michel Moore, head of the LAPD, told a media outlet, the following: «It is absolutely heartbreaking, and I cannot find the words to try to comfort a mother and a family, but I will assure them, the public, and our people that we will carry out a full and exhaustive investigation.»

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