Suspect charged with fatal shooting of security guard at housing complex near USC

SOUTH LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A 31-year-old man has been charged with murdering a security guard who chased off the trespassing suspect from a student apartment complex near the University of Southern California.

Authorities say the suspect, identified in official documents as Alexader Crawford, 31, fatally shot security guard Jave Garanganao, 41, earlier this week.

Crawford was trespassing at a student housing building in the 300 block of West Adams Boulevard just after midnight on Dec. 27 when Garanganao, working as a security guard, asked him to leave, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

Garanganao followed the trespasser off the property, at which point Crawford allegedly drew a gun and shot the guard multiple times.

At the scene, yellow evidence markers appeared to indicate as many as a dozen shell casings on the sidewalk after the shooting.

The suspect fled the scene but an arrest was made later that day, when officers found Crawford sleeping in a parking area near the scene of the shooting.

The LAPD later said the suspect had a handgun in his possession which was recovered. Investigators later determined the gun was the same caliber as the weapon that killed Garanganao.

A GoFundMe page was created to help Garanganao's 13-year-old daughter.

Detectives reviewed surveillance video and determined the person they took into custody was the suspected shooter, police said. He was identified as Crawford and booked for suspicion of murder.

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón's office announced on Friday that a murder charge had been filed, as well as possession of a firearm by a felon.

"Mr. Garanganao was just trying to do his job when he was tragically killed," Gascón said. "My heart goes out to the victim's family and friends who have endured such a tremendous loss during the holiday season. My office's Bureau of Victim Services will provide them the services and resources they need moving forward."

A security guard for an off-campus apartment complex was shot and killed early Wednesday morning outside the student residential building located less than a mile from the USC campus, and police said the shooting was possibly prompted by a dispute over trespassing.

City News Service contributed to this report.