Authorities Identify Redondo Beach Pier Shooter

REDONDO BEACH, CA — The shooter who wounded two people at the Redondo Beach Pier before police shot and killed him was publicly identified as a 36-year-old Long Beach resident, authorities said this week.

Kenneth Vessell was identified by the Los Angeles County Coroner's office.

Redondo Beach police received a call regarding a gunshot victim and an active shooter in the area of the Horseshoe Pier in the 100 block of West Torrance Boulevard about 8:20 p.m. Aug. 25, said Deputy Tracy Koerner of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which was aiding in the investigation.

Officers found two gunshot victims when they arrived, then they pursued an armed shooting suspect and found him near a rock embankment near the beach, Redondo Beach Police Lt. Shawn Freeman said. The suspect had a gun and knife and the shooting happened while officers tried to detain him.

The suspect was struck in the upper torso and pronounced dead at the scene, Koerner said.

A handgun and knife were recovered at the scene, he said. No officers or additional civilians were injured, Koerner added.

One of the wounded victims was described by deputies as a boy, while the other was described as a man.

Both suffered single gunshot wounds to the lower torso and were taken to a hospital, where they were in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Koerner.

Sheriff's Homicide Bureau detectives were assisting the Redondo Beach PD with what was being called "an attempted murder/officer-involved shooting investigation."

Witnesses described a scary and chaotic scene at the usually bustling pier.

One man told KTLA5 he was shot at and that his ear was still ringing hours later because "it was that close."

"He just missed me again as I was ducking," the man told KTLA, referring to the shooter.

Joe Granda was in Tony's on the Pier with his brother when they heard what sounded like five loud cracks. He told the Los Angeles Times that he and other patrons hid under tables, and that about five to 10 minutes later he saw police swarm the pier.

Granda said he was able to see a man he thinks was the shooter hurdle over a railing and fall onto rocks below the pier with officers in pursuit.

He told the Times that he heard about five gunshots and saw the man stumble.

Per the policy of the Redondo Beach PD, the Sheriff's Department was requested to be the primary investigating agency for this officer-involved shooting, Freeman said.

Anyone with information was asked to contact the Sheriff's Department's Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Anonymous tips can be called in to Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or submitted online at lacrimestoppers.org.

- City News Service and Patch Editor Nicole Charky contributed to this report.

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