Murder of Lea Mek
Lea Mek | |
---|---|
Born | 1974 or 1975 |
Died | (aged 18) El Monte, California, U.S. |
Cause of death | Gang shooting |
Nationality | Cambodian |
Lea Mek (1974/1975 – December 3, 1993) was a Cambodian refugee living in the United States who was a member of the Asian Boyz street gang. On December 3, 1993, Mek was murdered in a gang shooting by the Wah Ching gang, at a pool hall in El Monte, California. The murder was caught on camera by four surveillance cameras installed within the hall.[1] After his murder, the Asian Boyz declared war on the Wah Ching. As a result, it influenced a number of other gang murders and shootings in the LA area, and created a strong feud between both Asian gangs. Authorities claim the murder inspired a chain reaction of gang violence which led to ten other murders in the LA area.[2]
Murder
On Friday, December 3, 1993, 18-year-old Lea Mek, nicknamed "Kicker", went to a
Aftermath
Officer Greg Carroll from the El Monte Police Department was the first to arrive on scene. The hall still smelt of gunpowder and it was silent inside, with people still cowering behind pool tables in shock over the shooting. At the time of the shooting, the hall was filled with around fifty people, some of whom were children. Four hidden surveillance cameras recorded the incident in black and white. The cameras recorded no audio however. Yang was identified as the killer because of the video tapes and was captured at a later date. He was sentenced to life in prison for the murder. [4] The other shooter was also captured and sentenced to 10 years in jail on condition he pled guilty to the crime, which he did.[5]
The murder of Mek is a key incident between the Wah Ching and Asian Boyz. It caused even more tension and rivalry between the two gangs. Authorities claim the murder inspired a chain reaction of gang violence which led to ten other murders in the LA area.[6] Six months later, the Asian Boyz carried out a revenge hit by performing a drive-by shooting on the Wah Ching at a San Marino High School graduation party, which led to the deaths of two Asian youths.[7]
In popular culture
Footage of the crime has been shown on documentaries and was broadcast widely in the media at the time of the incident. Footage of the murder has been shown on programs such as
References
- ^ Youtube. "WAH CHING ASIAN BOYZ SHOOTING LONGER VERSION". Youtube. Retrieved 2017-01-11.
- ISBN 9781137475596. Retrieved 2017-01-11.
- ^ LAPD. "Multi Agency Effort to Bring Two Violent Gang members to Justice". LAPD Online. Retrieved 2017-01-11.
- ^ CA.gov. "CDCR Inmate Locator". Retrieved 2017-03-05.
- ^ Youtube. "Asian Gang Members Arrested Asian Boyz Wah Ching Shooting". Youtube. Retrieved 2017-01-11.
- ^ America's Most Wanted. "America's Most Wanted: Wah Ching Shootout". Outie.net. Retrieved 2017-01-11.
- ^ Vicki Torres (19 August 1994). "Officials Link Gang Rivalry to Party Slayings". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2017-01-11.
- History Channel. Retrieved 2017-09-09.
- ^ "Banned from TV - Pool Hall Gang Shooting Caught On Video (1993)". YouTube. 2021-01-02.