An unidentified white male was shot in the head and killed Friday morning in a stolen vehicle on a Del Rey street, police said.
Police were called to the 5500 block of Margaret Avenue about 7 a.m. after residents reported hearing five to six gun shots, said Lt. Jeff Bert of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Officers found a white male about 25- to 35-years old inside a late model Lexus with gunshot wounds to his body and multiple bullet casings outside the vehicle, Bert said. The man was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Lexus had been stolen a few weeks ago in West Los Angeles, Bert said.
The victim was shot with a handgun, but the caliber of the weapon was not immediately known.
Police did not have any suspect descriptions.
The man's identity was being withheld until his next of kin was notified, said Lt. David Smith of the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office.
The man was shot and killed just north of Jefferson Boulevard and south of Juniette Street. Apartment complexes line the stretch of Jefferson Boulevard near where the shooting took place, but the neighborhood just north of the busy street consists mostly of quiet, single-family homes.
The area around the cri
me scene was cordoned off with yellow police tape and about a dozen officers were assisting in the investigation.
Bert described the location as a "nice area," but he said some gangs do pass through it.
"Because of the neighborhood we always take extra caution to exhaust gang angles, but we have no evidence to suggest it was a gang crime particularly," Bert said. "We're looking at all angles right now."
Eric DeSobe, president of the Del Rey Neighborhood Council, said the council would continue to work to make Del Rey safe.
"I want to affirm the Del Rey NC's role in ensuring this community is safe for everyone," DeSobe said. "We will use our unique position to offer a voice for residents' concerns about public safety while at the same time using our close relationship with Pacific Division to support their efforts in any way possible."
Editor's Note: This version updates a previous version of this story.
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