Armed attackers killed a woman in front of her horrified husband as they attempted to rob the couple outside an upmarket Newport Beach mall, police have said.
The 68-year old woman, named as Patricia McKay from New Zealand, and her husband had been outside a Barnes & Noble at the Fashion Island mall when they were approached by two men at around 3.30 pm on Tuesday.
A ‘struggle’ ensued, with one of the men fleeing the scene on foot and firing several rounds with a handgun as he did so, according to reports.
The woman was then dragged into the parking lot as the two men got into a Toyota Camry being driven by a third man.
The suspects then ran over McKay as they drove away from the scene, firing shots as they led the police on a high-speed chase, Newport Beach Police Sgt. Steve Oberon told DailyMail.com.
No one was struck by the gunfire, police confirmed.
Cops began following the men in a cross-county pursuit shortly after the violent attack.
They chased them into Los Angeles County after a pair of suspects jumped out near Los Alamitos, CBS reports.
The suspects’ car reached speeds of 110mph in the chase on the 105 freeway. Two jumped out of the car and began running around a neighborhood in South Gate.
Police found one of the men hiding behind trash cans outside a house and arrested him.
They also tracked down and arrested two other suspects in the fatal attack.
Newport Beach Police officials identified the suspects as Jaden Cunningham, 18, of Lancaster, Malachi Eddward Darnell, 18, of Los Angeles, and Leroyernest Joseph McCrary, 26, of Compton.
All three were booked on suspicion of homicide, robbery with a firearm and conspiracy.
The woman’s husband was not injured in the attack, police said, and the gunfire did not result in any other injuries.
‘It is a shock,’ Newport Beach Police Sgt. Steve Oberon said. ‘It just doesn’t happen normally here.’
Mayor Will O’Neill said he was ‘furious’ after hearing news of the attack, which he described as ‘staggering’.
‘I’m horrified. I’m mourning the loss of someone who died inside of our city because of crime… This is a tragedy and I’m furious.
‘Newport Beach is a safe community and we’re mourning the loss of someone,’ he said.
‘Frankly, to hell with these guys. … These are thugs. Every community is now dealing with this. We have to do better as a society. We cannot tolerate this.’