Sheriff’s detectives investigate death in West Hollywood
By Edwin Folven, 7/12/2012
A section of Fountain Avenue was closed near Curson Avenue in West Hollywood Tuesday evening while sheriff’s detectives investigated the death of a victim whose body was found in an apartment.
Lt. Eddie Hernandez, with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Homicide Bureau, said a maintenance worker at the building in the 7600 block of Fountain Avenue found the victim in an apartment and notified police. Hernandez said the victim had likely been dead for at least two weeks, and the body was badly decomposed. He said there were no signs of foul play, and the death is believed to have occurred from natural causes. Authorities are awaiting the results of a coroner’s investigation before closing the case, Hernandez added.
“At this point, there is nothing to say it was a homicide, but we have to investigate any report of a death like this, ” Hernandez added. “The body was decomposed, so at this point we don’t even have his name. We know it was a male, but we don’t know his age. Once we know his identity, we will be checking with family members and friends to see when they last spoke to him or saw him, but right now it is just a death investigation.”
Hernandez said authorities believe the victim was elderly and lived alone. Authorities closed the eastbound lanes on Fountain Avenue around 4:30 p.m., and the street was reopened around 6 p.m.
