Taco Crime Blotter Volume 1 No. 2

Okay, so the editors here told me I could write about anything related to crime in the greater Los Angeles area and it did not have to be related to tacos in any way, shape, or form. But look what fell into my lap while I was surfing the LAPD blog this morning:

At 2:05 in the morning on July 22, 2006, Eric Salvador, 26, and his cousin, Efrain Martinez, 27-years-old, were eating at a taco stand (ed. Perhaps La Canada Taqueria, specializing in mariscos?) in the 3100 block of West Pico Boulevard. A male Hispanic by the name of Edgar Suchite, 35, saunters into the stand and begins yelling at the pair, as well as other patrons.

Without warning, Edgar shoots Salvador in the chest. Martinez runs to the aid of his cousin, and fuckhead Edgar turns his piece in that direction, blasting him in the arm and chest. Martinez is a tough customer, though, and we’re not talking about being picky about the cilantro in his tacos. No, the wounded Martinez, along with other patrons, chased Edgar through the Pico-Union neighborhood, caught him, and detained him until the police arrived.

Both Salvador and Martinez were transported to Cedars Sinai Medical Center where, sadly, they later died from their injuries.

Edgar Suchite faces two counts of murder and is being held on $2,000,000 bail.

A strange kind of satisfaction that must have been for Martinez, to chase down and detain the man who murdered you and your cousin. Edgar Suchite will have a long time to contemplate the morbid absurdity that put him where he belongs.