Mother and 4-year-old daughter killed by gunman while walking home from grocery store

Relatives and friends grieve beside a makeshift memorial at the intersection of 9th Street and Locust Avenue in Long Beach, where a mother and daughter were shot and killed on Saturday night.

By James Queally and Frank Shyong

Aug. 7, 2016 2:30 PM PT

A mother and her 4-year-old daughter were shot and killed Saturday night in Long Beach while walking home from the grocery store.

The shooting occurred near the intersection of Locust Avenue and 9th Street about 10:40 p.m., said Nancy Pratt, a spokeswoman for the Long Beach Police Department. Officers responded to a report of a shooting and found the woman and young girl suffering from gunshot wounds.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene, Pratt said. Paramedics transported the child to a hospital, where she later died from her injuries.

The victims were identified as Carina Mancera, 26, and Jennabel Anaya, both of Long Beach, according to a statement from police.

No arrests have been made and police have not determined a motive for the shootings, authorities said.

Relatives and friends pay condolences to Luis Anaya, left, whose 4-year-old daughter was shot and killed along with her mother at the intersection of 9th Street and Locust Avenue in Long Beach on Saturday night.

Holding his head in his hands as he sat beside a small memorial to his slain wife and daughter Sunday morning, Luis Anaya said he had no idea who opened fire on his family.

Anaya said he and his family were returning home from the grocery store when shots rang out at the intersection. A man with his “face covered up” produced a gun and walked up to the intersection and shot at them, Anaya said.

“I couldn’t make his face,” Anaya said. “When I tried to look at him he shot at me.”

Seated next to a small array of votive candles and flowers that had sprung up at the shooting scene, Anaya spoke between sobs, mumbling answers to questions from reporters as he shook his head in shock.

“They shot my wife and daughter,” he said.

Neighbor Robert Navarro talks with Times photographer Luis Sinco about what he saw in the aftermath of the shooting.

The child’s grandmother later arrived on the scene, surrounded by relatives, sobbing.

“Why?” she cried over and over again. “Why my granddaughter and my daughter?”

Neighbors said they heard at least four shots late Saturday night. Matt Milewski, 38, said he heard one gunshot then three more in quick succession. The sound of gunshots is far from common in the neighborhood, he said.

“They’re very nice people. Innocent people,” said Elena Engberth, 58, who lives next door to the victims.

Jose Camacho, 38, said he ran to the corner when he heard the gunshots and found the mother and daughter lying at the foot of a stop sign on 9th Street. Both had been shot in the chest and back.

“This is crazy man,” he said, looking disgusted as he stared at the memorial at his feet.

The family of the victims set up a website with a photo of the mother and daughter, asking for help in covering their funeral expenses.

The investigation is continuing and police have asked anyone with information about the crime to call the Long Beach Police Department’s homicide detail at (562) 570-7244.

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UPDATES:

2:27 p.m.: This story was updated with the identity of the victims.

12:23 p.m.: This story was updated with changes to the top.

11:35 a.m.: This story has been updated with new information from family members of the victims.

This post was originally published at 9:35 a.m.