Long Beach police say they’ve arrested a suspect in the killing of 17-year-old Poly High School student Briana Soto — a mysterious and brazen slaying that “left her family devastated,” the chief of police said in a statement.
Soto had just gotten off work and was steps from her Cambodia Town home when she was shot for reasons that are still unclear on the evening of March 26, police previously said.
Soto’s mother was so nearby that she heard the fatal shots, according to LBPD Chief Wally Hebeish.
“Briana Soto was just 17 years old when she was tragically taken away from her family by a violent individual willing to commit such a reprehensible and brazen act of violence,” Hebeish said in a statement.
The chief said investigators “utilized every available resource” including public assistance, DNA, videos and cellular phone evidence to identify 34-year-old Long Beach resident Troy Lamar Fox as a suspect.
Police said they’re still investigating a motive for the slaying. They previously said it didn’t appear he had any interaction with Soto before the shooting, and it didn’t appear he stole anything from her.