Surveillance footage from a deadly January shooting outside a Michaels store in West Hills is now public, showing undercover Los Angeles County Sheriff’s detectives opening fire on an 18-year-old during a robbery stakeout at the Fallbrook Center shopping plaza.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department on March 6 released the video, which shows a man later identified by the county coroner as Brandon Goytia getting out of a white sedan, walking toward a woman, and pulling a semiautomatic handgun as detectives move in. Deputies say Goytia fired at them, they shot back, and he was pronounced dead at the scene on Jan. 22.
What the LASD summary says
According to a summary posted by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Major Crimes Bureau detectives were in the middle of a surveillance operation into a series of armed robberies when they saw a man leave a vehicle with a semiautomatic handgun, run toward a woman, push her to the ground and try to take her purse.
The department’s packet states that the suspect pointed the gun at a detective and fired before detectives returned fire, and that detectives provided medical aid until Los Angeles City Fire Department personnel arrived. Investigators also recovered what the summary describes as a 9mm semiautomatic "ghost gun" with a loaded extended magazine at the scene.
Identification, scene, and arrest
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner later identified the person who died as 18-year-old Brandon Goytia, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Local reporting and police accounts say a loaded semiautomatic handgun with an extended magazine was recovered and that a woman who drove away from the shopping center in a white sedan was taken into custody after a chase that ended near Agoura Road and Lewis Road in Agoura Hills, per NBC Los Angeles.
ABC7 carried family members’ accounts and aerial video that showed a large law enforcement presence at the Fallbrook Center while investigators worked the scene.
Investigation and oversight
The LASD says its Homicide Bureau and Internal Affairs Bureau responded to process the scene, and that the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Justice System Integrity Division monitored the investigation. The department says the case will be presented to the DA’s office for review to determine whether the force used violated criminal law.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputy-involved shooting materials and incident packet note that the Office of the Inspector General was notified and that the agency’s understanding could change as more evidence is collected and analyzed. The department’s summary says anyone with information is asked to contact Sheriff’s Homicide.
Why the footage matters
The release of the critical-incident video, and its quick circulation among local outlets, adds a visual public record of the minutes leading up to the shooting. That footage will now sit under a microscope as criminal and administrative reviews move ahead.
Local coverage, including reporting by KTLA, has zeroed in on the newly released video and the department’s written summary. The District Attorney’s office will ultimately decide whether any charges are warranted. In the meantime, neighbors, witnesses, and advocates say they will be watching how investigators and prosecutors handle the case while interviews and forensic work continue.
