Man flees gunshots, returns to find blood and woman missing from park, CA cops say

UPDATE: A 19-year-old woman who went missing after being kidnapped from a California park has been found dead, police say.

Andrea Vazquez was found dead “in a vegetation field” in Moreno Valley at about 11:50 p.m. Aug. 21, the Whittier Police Department said in an Aug. 22 Facebook post.

Gabriel Esparza, 20, was arrested at his Lakewood workplace Aug. 21, police said. He was booked into jail on counts of murder and kidnapping.

The original story is below.

A 19-year-old woman is missing after an apparent kidnapping at a Whittier park, California police say.

The woman was with a man in the parking lot at Penn Park when a gunman approached shortly after midnight on Sunday, Aug. 20, Whittier police said in a news release.

The man told officers he ran away after the gunman fired a shot in their direction, police said. When he returned, he found blood near his vehicle. The woman was missing.

Police are looking for Andrea Vazquez, 19, of Los Angeles County, the release said. She’s described as a 5-foot, 3-inch, 103-pound Hispanic woman with brownish-red hair and brown eyes.

Vazquez was last seen wearing a black long-sleeve crop top, khaki pants, and black low-top Converse shoes, police said. She has a tattoo reading “Edlyn” on the back of her neck, an Aries symbol on her right hand and a belly-button piercing.

Police ask anyone with information to call 562-567-9255, detective Jose Bolanos at 562-328-8504 or detective Tom Nordbak at 562-244-0054.

Anonymous tips can be left at 562-567-9299.

Whittier is about 20 miles southeast of Los Angeles.

This story was originally published August 21, 2023 at 10:36 AM with the headline "Man flees gunshots, returns to find blood and woman missing from park, CA cops say."