Evan Gaulhiac was 19 years old when he died on Tuesday, January 8, 2019, in the city of Pico Rivera. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds in the 9900 block of La Docena Lane. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a case of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report described him as "a 19-year-old Latino male" who "died Tuesday, Jan. 8, after being stabbed in Pico Rivera."
A few days later the Whittier Daily News added more detail. The paper reported that he was "a man killed during a fight at a Pico Rivera nursery" and that he was "an Alhambra resident." According to an investigator with the coroner's office, he "died of a stab wound to the chest."
The newspaper's account described a violent encounter in the middle of the night. "A fight occurred at a nursery in the 9900 block of La Docena Lane and involved at least four people, an investigator said." Deputies "received a call of an assault with a deadly weapon at the location at 1:48 a.m. and discovered the two victims." Evan "died at the scene while the other victim was taken to a hospital." The report noted that "a second man was also stabbed but survived."
The most important detail in that report concerned the people responsible. "Los Angeles County sheriff's detectives have not found the two men who were seen leaving the scene after the Jan. 8 stabbing," the paper wrote. No names or descriptions of those two men were published, and no later report that they had been identified could be found.
Those who loved Evan tried to give him a proper farewell. A GoFundMe page created in Whittier on January 12, 2019, sought help to "pay for the services of Evan Gaulhiac who tragically lost his life on January 8 of this year. At the young age of 19." The page said, "He leaves behind his mother," and added, "Nobody deserves to go at such a young age. And no mother should be forced to bury her only son." Twenty donors gave a little more than $2,500 toward a goal of $14,000.
Much remains unknown. The public record does not say why Evan was at the nursery so late at night, what started the fight, or whether he knew the men who left. It does not say whether the surviving victim was able to tell detectives what happened.
Pico Rivera is a city in the southeastern part of Los Angeles County, east of downtown Los Angeles, set between the Rio Hondo and the San Gabriel River. It is a largely residential community of single-family homes, with commercial strips and some industrial areas. The city contracts with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department for police services.
Hundreds of people are killed in Los Angeles County every year, and a large share of those killings end without an arrest.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Evan Gaulhiac could be found in news archives or public records. More than six years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. The surviving victim, and anyone who was on or near La Docena Lane in Pico Rivera in the early morning hours of January 8, 2019, or who heard talk afterward about a fight there, may hold information that could help detectives. Even a small detail, such as a name overheard, a vehicle seen nearby or a conversation remembered, can help detectives move a case forward. Anyone with information can contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
