The LAPD Is Wondering Why One of Its Officers Turned Away a Witness in the Murder of Nipsey Hussle
LatestThe LAPD is launching an internal investigation into why a desk officer reportedly waved away the woman who drove Nipsey Hussle’s alleged killer away from the scene after she tried to turn herself in.
The investigation was opened after the Los Angeles Times reported last week that the woman driving the getaway car testified that she went to the police after seeing her car and license plate on the news:
“Oh my God,” she told her mom, according to her May testimony before a grand jury. “My car is on here and everything and I didn’t do anything. I didn’t know this boy was gonna do this.”
Her mother immediately called the police, who said that detectives would be in at 6 a.m. the next day. Both the mother and daughter showed up to the 77th Street police station the following morning, where the daughter informed the front desk officer that she wanted to talk to someone because her car was linked to a murder. This was the response:
“One of the police officers is like, ‘Well, don’t worry about it,’ you know, ‘Don’t listen to the news,’” the woman testified. “My mom said, ‘Well, she needs to talk to somebody.’ But he said, ‘Don’t worry about it.’ So we just left.”
The woman later returned to speak to detectives, but only after her mother called the police again. LAPD spokesman Josh Rubenstein said Monday in an email to CBS News that the internal investigation began a few days ago:
“While the initial indications pointed to a miscommunication, we have initiated an administrative investigation to ensure all policies and procedures were followed,” Rubenstein wrote. “We will review all statements that have already been given, interview all of the individuals involved, and look for any potential body cam video that may have captured the interchange.”
The woman testified that she’d known the suspect, Eric Holder, for about a month prior to Hussle’s murder, and that on that day she was under the impression that she and Holder were stopping at a shopping center to get something to eat. After seeing Hussle, she testified that she and Holder drove to a gas station, where he loaded a gun and told her he would be back. She heard two shots before Holder returned moments later, telling her to drive.
The grand jury transcript, which was unsealed after local media requested for it to be made public, said that Hussle was shot following a four minute conversation with Holder, who has pleaded not guilty.