A man died after being detained by officers in downtown L.A. on Wednesday following a fight with construction workers, and police believe he may be connected to an earlier attack in which a teen was pushed onto Red Line train tracks.
The first incident took place around 9:15 a.m., when a 14-year-old boy was shoved onto the Metro tracks at Pershing Square, according to Los Angeles Police Department Capt. Marc Reina.
The teen was waiting on the platform for a train at the Metro station on Fifth Street around 9:15 a.m. when a man came up from behind and pushed him into the path of oncoming train, Reina said.
The attack was unprovoked.
With the help of bystanders, the boy managed to get off the tracks moments before the train arrived. The suspect, meanwhile, fled.
Then, approximately eight minutes later, officers were dispatched to the area of Fifth and Flower streets to investigate an altercation, according to LAPD Officer Tony Im.
A man had apparently hit a construction worker on the back of the head, which led to a fight involving multiple workers.
Responding officers used minor force to detain and handcuff the suspect, according to LAPD Detective Meghan Aguilar.
“Minor use of force would be something not lethal, no beanbag, no Taser. Sometimes it’s just a firm grip on a body part. That would be minor,” she said.
It’s unclear what exactly happened, but the man was transported to a local hospital, where he died.
His name has not yet been released. A cause of death was also not immediately known.
The suspect has not been identified in either incident, but investigators believe it’s the same person, according to Aguilar. She cautioned that was not yet confirmed, however.
Both the teen and the construction worker are OK.
No additional details were immediately provided.
KTLA’s Jennifer Thang contributed to this story.
