Amado Martinez-Bello was 52 years old when he died on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012, after being hurt near the 1900 block of West Slauson Avenue in Chesterfield Square, in South Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, his death was ruled a homicide, and the Los Angeles Times Homicide Report database lists the cause as a stabbing. It is listed as a Los Angeles Police Department Criminal Gang and Homicide Division case.
The coroner's records describe him as a Latino man. The written account of his death is short and does not match the database entry on one important point. Ed Winter, a spokesman for the coroner's office, said Amado went to a fire station about 5:41 p.m. "with gunshot injuries." Paramedics were called and he was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 6:37 p.m. "Winter said it's unknown where the victim was shot," the Homicide Report wrote, adding that "No other details were available about the case."
The record therefore leaves it unclear whether his wounds came from a gun, a knife or both, and no later correction could be found.
What the account does show is that he was still able to reach a fire station on his own, which suggests he may have been hurt somewhere nearby and sought help himself. Where the attack happened, who was involved and why remain unknown to the public. The record does not say whether he told the firefighters what had happened.
Beyond his name, his age and the place where he died, almost nothing about Amado Martinez-Bello has been made public. No obituary, memorial page or family fundraiser could be found for this story, and no news outlet appears to have reported on the death. He surely had family, friends or neighbors who remember who he was, but none of that has entered the public record. His hyphenated surname is not common, but searches for it found nothing beyond the Homicide Report entry.
Chesterfield Square is a small neighborhood in South Los Angeles, made up mostly of modest single-family homes built in the early and middle twentieth century. Slauson Avenue, one of the main east-west roads across South Los Angeles, runs along its edge and is lined with small businesses, auto shops, churches and markets.
The case was assigned to the LAPD's Criminal Gang and Homicide Division, a specialized unit that handles some killings in South Los Angeles. The assignment by itself does not show that investigators believed the killing was gang-related.
Homicides in Los Angeles fell steeply in the late 2000s and early 2010s, yet many killings from those years were never solved.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Amado Martinez-Bello could be found in news archives or public records. More than 13 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who was near West Slauson Avenue in Chesterfield Square on the afternoon of Dec. 13, 2012, who saw a wounded man making his way to the fire station, or who knew Amado and where he spent his days, may hold information that could help detectives. The Homicide Report asked anyone with information to contact the LAPD Criminal Gang and Homicide Division at 485-1383. 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 call the Los Angeles Police Department at 877-527-3247 or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
