One man shot to death, another stabbed during brawl at Alpine Village Center near Torrance
One man was shot to death and another was stabbed by separate assailants during a brawl that erupted early Sunday outside a punk-rock concert in Alpine Village near Torrance.
The fight spilled into the parking lot of the Alpine Village Center at 833 Torrance Blvd., in an unincorporated county area, at about 12:15 a.m., according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
The shooting victim was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. A second male victim was stabbed during the fight and was taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
The two incidents are being investigated as separate crimes occurring at the same venue, the department said.
An official with the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Department said the victims’ names are being withheld as the investigation continues.
No arrests have been made. Investigators said descriptions of the gunman have been vague.
Sheriff’s deputies said the punk band Agression, from Oxnard, was headlining the event. Other acts scheduled to perform were Circle One, Dirty Rebels and Rompe Cabezas.
Alpine Village Center offers dining, shops and several halls for concerts, and sheriff’s deputies said there was much activity there Saturday night.
By Sunday afternoon, life was back to normal at the German-themed shopping center featuring gift shops, restaurants and a supermarket – all in quaint buildings with turreted rooftops a block or so away from the Harbor (110) Freeway.
In the parking lot, vendors sold their wares at the swap meet that occurs every Sunday.
At the Alpine Village Inn, senior citizens polka-danced on the small ballroom floor to the music of a live keyboardist. The punk-rock concert occurred in a neighboring building called the Klubhaus, which typically hosts private events such as weddings and banquets.
Ivan Fernandez of Torrance, who works at the nearby swap meet, said although he wasn’t at Saturday night’s concert, he attended a similar punk-metal show at the same venue about a year ago, and a melee broke out in the parking lot then as well.
“That night, there were kind of two groups: the metal heads and the gangsters,” he said. “They clashed.”
Fernandez said that in last year’s brawl his friend – who also worked at the swap meet – was dragged into the fight and took a few kicks to the head.
“He had a concussion, and lost his memory,” Fernandez said. “He couldn’t work no more.”
Alpine Village is clearly a party venue: Its Facebook page features photo after photo of young people slamming beers, dirty dancing and eating sausages.
Anyone with information about Sunday’s incident is encouraged to contact the sheriff’s Robbery-Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. To provide information anonymously, call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-
TIPS (8477), or text the letters TIPLA plus your tip to CRIMES (274637). This can also be accomplished by using the website http://lacrimestoppers.org.