Authorities say the suspected gunman fled after the fatal shooting and was located about an hour later several miles away.
ARCADIA, Calif. — A fatal shooting at an Arcadia apartment triggered a search spanning two cities Thursday, with police locating the suspected gunman in Pasadena about an hour later before he suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound as officers prepared to approach him, authorities said.
The victim was later identified by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office as 15-year-old Mina Kurdian. Authorities identified the suspect as 20-year-old Paul Anthony Cruz Jr. and said he had been in a dating relationship with Kurdian. Investigators say Cruz forced his way into the Arcadia residence before the teenager was shot. A motive has not been publicly established.
The sequence began shortly after 11 a.m. Oct. 22, when Arcadia police responded to the 800 block of West Huntington Drive following a report of a disturbance and a person firing a gun inside a residence. Officers arrived and found Kurdian with a gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Cruz had already left the property by the time officers arrived, according to investigators. Law enforcement agencies began searching for him while homicide detectives gathered evidence at the Arcadia scene. Authorities later determined that Cruz had traveled to Pasadena, several miles west of the apartment complex.
About an hour after the Arcadia shooting, Pasadena police located Cruz near South Arroyo Parkway. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said officers were preparing to contact him when he suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police then moved in, and Cruz was transported to a hospital in critical condition.
The Pasadena encounter created a second major crime scene connected to the Arcadia investigation. Police restricted access to part of a shopping-center parking area while officers and investigators worked at the location. Witnesses in the area reported seeing officers converge on the scene shortly after hearing a gunshot.
The case has involved several law enforcement agencies because the initial killing and the later police encounter occurred in separate jurisdictions. Arcadia officers handled the first emergency response, Pasadena police located Cruz, and Los Angeles County sheriff’s homicide investigators became involved in the investigation into Kurdian’s death.
Authorities have not publicly announced a motive or detailed what investigators believe happened immediately before the shooting inside the Arcadia residence. They also have not resolved differing neighborhood accounts about whether Kurdian and Cruz were still dating or had recently ended their relationship. Officials have said the two had been in a dating relationship.
Cruz had not been publicly reported as booked into the Los Angeles County jail system while he remained hospitalized after the Pasadena shooting. No court case or formal criminal charge had been announced in the latest reports reviewed. His medical condition could affect when investigators are able to take additional legal steps.
Authorities continue to investigate Kurdian’s death and the events that led from the Arcadia apartment to the Pasadena parking lot. Cruz was most recently reported in critical condition, and officials had not released a motive or announced the next stage of any criminal proceeding.
Author note: Last updated October 26, 2026.