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Robbery suspect shot and killed a man in downtown Los Angeles and wounded a Target doorman days later, authorities said

A man who police say shot two security guards who confronted him at a Target store in downtown Los Angeles is facing multiple counts of attempted murder and robbery, officials said Friday.

Standing outside the Figat7 shopping center in Los Angeles County where the shooting occurred on December 30. Atty. Nathan Hochman said Jabril Metoyer was also wanted in connection with another shooting that happened three days earlier on the same street.

“This type of brazen theft and violence is unacceptable and will not be tolerated in Los Angeles County,” Hodgman said.

Police previously said Metoyer began his shooting spree after being confronted by a loss prevention officer and an armed guard who accused him of stuffing more than $1,000 worth of merchandise into a busy shopping mall near 7th Street and Metro Center Briefcase in Target inside the center. A guard fired back, and at least 10 rounds were fired from both sides.

The loss prevention officer remains hospitalized, Hodgman said Friday. He had been listed in critical condition on Tuesday. The armed security guard was treated and released from the hospital on Tuesday morning.

Metoyer entered a not guilty plea Friday morning during a brief hearing in a downtown Los Angeles court, said Natalin Daldalian, a spokesman for the public defender’s office.

“We ask the public to respect the presumption of innocence and refrain from speculation as we work to gather all relevant facts,” his attorney Carlos Bido said in a statement.

Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonald said investigators identified the suspect after his photo circulated in the media. Metoyer was arrested after a several-hour standoff at a residential building in the 1200 block of West Ingraham Street on New Year’s Eve, according to McDonald.

McDonald said his officers evacuated the building where Metoyer barricaded himself and then spent several hours trying to coax him out. Eventually, police fired tear gas into his room, flushed him out and arrested him. The chief said a handgun was found at the scene.

Three days before the confrontation at Target, Metoyer shot a man near the intersection of Seventh and Figueroa streets, Hochman said. Authorities said the victim refused to give Metoye money but did not clarify whether it was an attempted robbery or if he was begging. A spokesman for the District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to questions about the Dec. 27 shooting.

Hochman said Metoyer’s last known address was the Ingraham Hotel and he did not believe Metoyer had a criminal record before the recent shooting.

Hochman said that if convicted on all counts, Metoyer faces 25 years to life in prison. He noted that defendants faced harsher sentences for firearm use than under the administration of his predecessor, former District Attorney George Gascón.

“We want to send a very strong message to anyone who thinks they can use a firearm in a violent crime, and it turns out they will face potentially the greatest consequences,” he said.

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