- Police were searching for a man responsible for the deaths of three homeless men while they slept last weekend
- Jerrid Joseph Powell, 33, was arrested for these murders and a fourth after his vehicle was identified late Wednesday in Beverly Hills
- The suspect is described as a convicted felon with 'violence in his background'
Los Angeles police have arrested a man accused of killing three homeless men, and a fourth victim was shot in his garage during a follow-home robbery.
On Saturday afternoon, Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore announced that the man arrested in the murders is 33-year-old Jerrid Joseph Powell.
He is also the main suspect in the murder of Nicholas Simbolon – father of two – which took place last Tuesday evening in San Dimas.
Moore said the department suspects Powell was responsible for four murders in four days.
The suspect, who lives in Los Angeles, allegedly shot three homeless men in the city between November 26 and 29.
His vehicle was identified by police in Beverly Hills last Wednesday. While conducting a traffic stop, authorities found the gun used in the murders and he was arrested.
Jerrid Joseph Powell, 33, was arrested for the murders of three homeless men in Los Angeles and a San Dimas father of two
An image released by police shows a person suspected of killing three homeless people in Los Angeles
On Saturday, Moore said: “During the course of the investigation into our murders, we have been able to identify the vehicle that we believe is linked to our three murders as the same vehicle that Mr. Powell used in the murder of Mr. Simbolon. '
'[We learned] that it was taken into custody by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department as evidence of their murder.
LA County Sheriff Robert Luna discussed the use of the controversial license plate reader system that law enforcement sometimes uses to identify suspicious vehicles.
“We know there is controversy over the use of this system, but let me tell our community something. If we had not entered that license plate into the system, this person, who we believe is responsible for at least four murders, might have [still] been there and insulted again,” he said.
Detectives in Beverly Hills identified a vehicle possibly involved in Sambolon's murder the night before and plugged the license plate into the automated reading system, leading to the traffic stop and Powell's eventual arrest.
He was eventually arrested for the subsequent murder of Sambolon and for the three homeless men. Powell was described as a convicted felon with “violence in his background.” No further details about his previous convictions were shared.
“The next goal is to at least lock this man up forever because he doesn't deserve to be on the street,” Luna said.
LA Mayor Karen Bass praised the police and sheriff's departments for their quick work.
“Twenty-four hours ago we announced there was a killer on the loose, but now he's in custody,” she said.
“Immediately following the conclusion of yesterday's press conference, my office was able to convene more than four hundred people representing city departments, housing providers, regional agencies… and elected officials at the city and county levels to ensure that they [get the word out] about the threat facing our unhoused community.”
LAPD Chief Michel Moore provided an update on the case on Saturday
LA Mayor Karen Bass praised local authorities for their quick action in identifying and arresting the alleged killer
The suspect was arrested after authorities ran the license plates of a suspect vehicle in Beverly Hills
One of the men was fatally shot while sleeping against a wall
Police were searching for the gunman responsible for killing three homeless men as they slept in different parts of the city.
Authorities believed the same person was responsible for all three deaths, which occurred in the early hours of last Sunday, Monday and Wednesday.
All three victims were men who slept in open spaces, such as alleys or sidewalks.
One of the killings of the men was described by Moore as 'brutal' and 'ruthless'.
A motive for the killings has not yet been determined.