Gas station clerks fatally shot; assailant at large

Two employees of a Carson gas station -- one who planned to retire soon and the other who was just starting on the job -- were shot to death early Saturday.

The bodies of Eduardo Roco, 74, of Carson and Esther Arteaga, 32, of Wilmington were found behind the sales counter by the owner about 5 a.m., according to Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials.

Detectives believe the employees were shot about 4:20 a.m., based on cash register receipts, said Deputy Maribel Rizo.

Investigators also noted that the bulletproof glass protecting the cashiers had been slid open, Rizo said.

Roco, who emigrated from the Philippines five years ago, had worked at the station for about three years, according to his daughter, Floredita Tabbada, 49.

“He wanted to retire soon,” Tabbada said.

“He was going to tell the manager. He was tired of the graveyard shift.”

Tabbada said her father was a “quiet, kind man” who had been a nautical instructor at a trade school in the Philippines. He had three daughters and was going to celebrate his 50th wedding anniversary in January.

“It’s just so tragic,” Tabbada said. “It’s hard for us to accept his death. He was a very good man.”

Tabbada said she met Arteaga’s relatives Saturday at the gas station as detectives examined the crime scene. They told her that Arteaga had started working as a cashier about a week ago.

“It’s very sad for her family as well,” Tabbada said.

The gas station is in the 22200 block of Avalon Boulevard, Rizo said.

Reached by telephone Saturday, Anthony Hasty, whose family has run the station for 55 years, said, “Nothing like this has ever happened” before.

The motive for the crime was under investigation, Rizo said. Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call homicide investigators at (323) 890-5500.

matt.lait@latimes.com

Times staff writer Rong-Gong Lin II contributed to this report.