Police in Inglewood are searching for multiple suspects in the death of a man who jumped in front of his young eight-year old son to shield him from gunfire. On Tuesday evening, Fredrick Martin Jr. was with his son and another friend cleaning their garage when two suspects approached the garage and started to shoot. As he was shielding his son, he was hit in the abdomen and the upper part of his torso. Later that evening he died from his injuries at a local hospital.
His son was only grazed with a bullet, said police. Martin’s friend, the boy’s godfather, was shot in his ankle, but did not require medical assistance. The police said detectives are investigating the attack, which took place just after 7pm at the 3200 block of West 109 Street.
Martin was born and raised in Inglewood. His family said he was separated from his son’s mother, but was involved in raising the young boy.
Police said they would exhaust every lead and tip until they found the two suspects. They told reporters they do not close murder cases. Concerns over recent attacks in the area have residents worried. Two other shootings took place that same night, but police do not believe they are related to the Martin shooting.
On Saturday, a number of Martin’s family members and friends gathered at the home of his mother to talk about his life. He was an analyst at Kaiser Permanente in Pasadena and never participated in any of the local gangs.
