Simone WilsonUpdate: Twitter users are directing their R.I.P.s toward a user called @The1LuxuryBoy, or Nathan “Chase” Vickers. Memorial art, after the jump.
The transgender woman who was killed in Hollywood with a single gunshot to the chest last night has been identified today by the L.A. County Coroner as Nathan Henry Vickers, 32. However, according to LGBT blog Frontiers LA, the victim preferred to go by Cassidy Nathan Vickers.
Her shooter — described in an LAPD Crime Alert as a 5-foot-9-inch, 150-pound black man in his late 20s, sporting “light facial hair” a “dark, hooded sweatshirt” — is currently on the loose.
Investigators believe he may be the same man…
… who shot at another black transgender woman in West Hollywood's central Plummer Park, then attempted to rob her, about one half-hour after the murder. In that non-fatal shooting, the suspect reportedly used a black semi-automatic pistol.
The first incident occurred around 9:55 p.m. at Gower Street and Lexington Avenue in Hollywood. According to City News Service, “paramedics pronounced the victim dead at the scene.” KTLA reports:
According to police, the suspect, a black male in his 20s, was last seen running on foot from the scene down Lexington Avenue. Witnesses say he was wearing a brown shirt and dark pants.
The second occurred in Plummer Park at about 10:25 p.m. — after which the shooter, whom investigators believe might be a transient, rode off on what appeared to be a Beach Cruiser.
The suspect, if both shooters are indeed the same man, is considered “armed and dangerous.” If you have any more information about the crimes, contact LAPD Detective Vinton at (213) 972-2901 or Detective Goodkin at (213) 972-2912.
Update: Menlo Park resident @MissT650 Tweeted the following tribute to Nathan “Chase” Vickers.
Credit: @MissT650 via Twitter
Did you know either of the victims? Any idea if this could be a spree? Please let us know.
[@simone_electra/swilson@laweekly.com]
Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.