Jan. 25--AGOURA HILLS -- After sifting through 630 tons of trash at Calabasas Landfill Wednesday, Los Angeles police didn't find the gun allegedly used in the Jan. 11 killing of Francisco "Pancho" Rodriguez. Police will resume the search Thursday morning at 8:30 a.m.
The LAPD enlisted the help of sheriff's deputies, firefighters, community policing groups and volunteers from the Prospectors Club to conduct a systematic search of the landfill all day Wednesday. LAPD called off the search at 4 p.m. after the gun had not been recovered.
"It's a challenge that we're trying to meet," said Lt. Dave Storaker of LAPD Topanga Division.
"We believe the murder weapon is in this landfill. We wouldn't be here doing what we're doing if
we didn't think it would be here."
Using rakes, about 30 searchers worked in shifts to comb through an estimated 630 tons of garbage looking for a handgun in a plastic Target bag.
"It's going to help put a bow on this murder case," said Capt. Charles Hearn of LAPD Topanga.
The sweltering haz-mat suits and gusting winds made the already daunting task more tedious, and some volunteers were treated for dehydration and chest paints, Storaker said.
But the searchers, unfazed by the muck, stench and piles of trash still waiting for them to sift through, kept at the task, waiting for the moment when their rake would uncover the alleged murder weapon.
"Whatever it takes, we've gotta find it," said Ian Shrago, a Woodland Hills attorney who volunteered for the search as part of the Topanga Volunteer Surveillance Team.
Rodriguez was shot in front of his Winnetka home in the 6900 block of Cozycroft Avenue on Jan. 11 soon after returning from a soccer game in which he played. Police said a woman knocked on his door, and he went outside and was shot.
Jason Schumann, 24, and Elizabeth Ibarra, 19, were arrested on Jan. 16 in connection with the crime. Schumann was charged with murder, and Ibarra is being held on
a probation violation. The suspects, who both have criminal records, remain jailed pending further court proceedings.
Police sources have told the Daily News that Rodriguez may have found himself in a love triangle involving a woman with a jealous male friend.
Copyright 2012 - Daily News, Los Angeles
