Suspect Arrested in Slaying of Store Guard

Officers staked out a South Gate home early Sunday and arrested the man suspected of fatally shooting one Sears security guard and wounding another in a shoplifting stunt gone sour.

Gilbert Ortiz, 20, of Bell was taken into custody at 12:35 a.m. as he tried to drive away from a home in the 10500 block of Richlee Avenue with a friend, Orange Police Lt. Art Romo said.

Romo said about a dozen detectives worked around the clock to track down Ortiz, suspected in the Friday slaying of 22-year-old Kyle O’Brien and wounding of 20-year-old Randall DePue at the Mall of Orange.

A published picture of the suspect from a Sears surveillance camera unleashed a flurry of tips and led police to friends and family of Ortiz, Romo said.

A 35-year-old woman who drove the suspect from the shooting scene had turned herself in to police Saturday and also helped them fill in “some key pieces of the puzzle,” such as how the pair escaped and the location of the gun, Romo said.

Ortiz used the surname Acosta when arrested and has also used the name Castro, police said. He was booked into the Orange County Jail on suspicion of murder, attempted murder and robbery. His bail was set at $250,000.

Romo said Ortiz had asked at least six people for a ride to Mexico, but “no one wanted to give him a ride.”

The shooting occurred about 4 p.m. Friday after a man who police believed was Ortiz approached a Sears employee, said he had recently purchased the new $152 pain sprayer he was carrying and asked to return it for a cash refund. A clerk became suspicious and called security because the man had no receipt.

Two unarmed security guards--O’Brien and DePue--walked the suspect to his car to get identification. A struggle ensued and the man pulled a gun, shooting O’Brien twice in the chest and DePue once in the arm before driving off, police and witnesses said. DePue was reported in stable condition Sunday at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Anahiem.