Suspects arrested for the deaths of USC graduate students
The Los Angeles Police Department arrested two men Friday afternoon believed to be responsible for the fatal shooting of two international graduate students in April, LAPD Detective David Garrido said.
Garrido said the suspects, who are scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday, are Bryan Barnes, 20, and Javier Bolden, 19. Though the suspects, who are being held without bail, are not known gang members, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said in a press conference Friday evening that they might be tied to a gang. The search for a weapon is still ongoing. Garrido said one suspect was arrested near Victorville and the other was arrested in South Central. Both are being held without bail.
Garrido said the LAPD is “quite confident” that Barnes and Bolden are responsible for the double homicide.
“The district attorney’s office is filing charges on Monday,” Garrido said.
Ming Qu and Ying Wu, 23-year old electrical engineering students from China, were fatally shot around 1 a.m. while sitting in Qu’s car on April 11. The incident occurred near the intersection of 27th Street and Raymond Avenue, about three blocks west of Vermont Avenue. The parents of Qu and Wu filed a lawsuit against USC Wednesday claiming that the university had intentionally misrepresented the safety of the surrounding area and the public safety services that the university provides.
Garrido said LAPD does not know whether the suspects knew the victims because Barnes and Bolden have not been interviewed. Garrido said police believe that the murders resulted from a robbery rather than a car-jacking, as initial reports suggested.
In a statement issued by the university, USC President C. L. Max Nikias lauded the city’s efforts in working to find those responsible for the shooting.
“They shared our outrage at this senseless and singular act and worked passionately to reach a resolution,” Nikias said. “The arrest of the suspects in the tragic deaths of our graduate students, Ying Wu and Ming Qu, begins the process of healing and of closing a painful chapter in the life of our community. We will always mourn the loss of Ying and Ming, but find comfort in the hope of achieving justice.”
Garrido said there is no longer a reward for information concerning the case.
During the press conference, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said that LAPD’s efforts should serve as a deterrent for future criminals.
“Let this be a reminder to anyone who wants to do something like this, we will work everyday to find you,” Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said.
Where have you been lately ? All those exceptional crimes by whites , Asian happened once a year , if not decade , just check out on your local newspaper , CNN the daily crime committed all over USA
Its nice to be politically correct , but stop hiding the true and deal with the roots of the problems , either it be environment , cultural , poverty , race
Race is a concern? Was it a concern when a Korean killed a classroom full of students at Virginia Tech and slaughtered and murdered in cold blood 32 students and wounded 17 others?
Was race a factor when two Columbine White students went on a killing spree when they murdered 12 classmates and a teacher?
Was race a factor when a Korean kills 7 and wounds 3 in a Christian Academy in Oakland, CA this year?
Was it racial when a White man walks into a salon in Seal Beach and murders 8 people?
Just asking….
As someone who actually goes to USC, I will tell you now that there is still a huge race divide. People always joke that Hispanics and Blacks only got in from affirmative action or athletics (Blacks only). Stop making USC out to be so multicultural… there aren’t many Blacks on campus, according to USC it’s about 5%. And it’s true, most of them are probably student athletes since that’s less than 1000 Black Students while football, basketball, track, etc are predominately Black. The only Blacks that are somewhat respected or “tolerated” in the words of another user are those who are completely whitewashed because they grew up in more privileged households.
Hey DT! Can you remove some of these horrible, racist comments? I assume they’re not coming from the USC community, but their inclusion here makes it seem like the Trojan Family is bigoted towards one of the many racial groups that are our neighbors in the West Adams neighborhood.
Get a life fool!
HELLO when you get DPS reports that constantly list the suspects/perpetrators as Hispanic or Black, it’s no wonder people assume that “many racial groups that are our neighbors in the West Adams neighborhood” are dangerous. The only people on campus who don’t make fun of Black people or don’t feel like least bit scared of Black people at night walking down Fig are Black people themselves who didn’t grow up whitewashed.
I knew the suspects in this case. Being around them several times, they never gave off this type of vibe Javier and BJ were good people but now they have thrown they life away. I have been following this on the news, but it never crossed my mind that they are the ones that have probably killed these people.
Did they chill at the frat house with you and the bros?
it’s strange how the racism of DT commenters never reflects the tolerance we find on campus. Alumni: Catch up. We’re no longer ignorant assholes.
Just how “tolerant” would you be if those two students were your own kids, killed by a random and barbaric act of violence?
If Obama had a son, he’d look like the murderers…
Why has the race of the suspects been obviously omitted from all news accounts?
Maybe the fact that they are black IS important to the healthy black community members who would like to distance themselves from such violent and evil people. California will not deliver a punishment serious enough … maybe Thomas above is correct: give them to the families’ of the dead.
Yes there was a composite photo out for several days now. We know they were black, not that that is important. What useless individuals. We should send them to China, for real justice!
I already suspected that the villains are african american as previously I said, and I was right. Hope the suspects get a fair justice for the crimes he commited