Los Angeles police have arrested a "person of interest" as they probe a series of seemingly random early-morning shootings that left three people dead and four wounded in the northeast San Fernando Valley. 
 
 LAPD Sgt. Frank Preciado confirmed SWAT officers took into custody a man who had barricaded himself in a house on the 13700 block of Kismet Ave. in Sylmar. Preciado said the man was a “person of interest” in the killings but would not comment further. 
 
 Valley shootings Christina House / For The Times Loved ones grieve after a woman was fatally shot in Pacoima, one of three people killed in separate shootings Sunday in the San Fernando Valley. Loved ones grieve after a woman was fatally shot in Pacoima, one of three people killed in separate shootings Sunday in the San Fernando Valley. (Christina House / For The Times) 
 
 Around 8:30 p.m., officers at the scene discussed the operation. One officer told others the man was a suspect in the killings and was also wanted on a warrant for animal cruelty. 
 
 After officers discussed efforts to make contact with the suspect over a cellphone, they reported seeing him trying to flee the house. He was quickly taken into custody. Officers reported over the radio that he had been found with a shotgun. It was not immediately clear what led police to the arrest. 
 
 Witnesses said two gunmen were driving a tan, gold or brown SUV, perhaps a Suburban or Tahoe, said Preciado. 
 
 The department's Robbery and Homicide division is leading the investigation into the shootings, which began just before 6 a.m. Sunday when a family of five was shot in the 1400 block of Celis Street as they drove to the nearby Santa Rosa Catholic Church. A 22-year-old woman was killed and her parents were in critical condition, Preciado said. Her two siblings had minor injuries, possibly from glass or metal fragments. 
 
 A second person was killed about 6:35 a.m., as he was hunting for recyclables at the Sylmar Recreation Center. He was gunned down as he walked toward the SUV in the parking lot, police said. "They never got out of the vehicle," Preciado said of the shooters. 
 
 The third fatal shooting occurred in the 12900 block of Filmore Street, where a woman was shot in her car. Residents called police after hearing the gunfire. Family and friends identified the victim as Gloria Esperanza Tobar, 59. 
 
 The identities of the other victims were not released as authorities worked to notify next of kin. 
 
 At the scene of the first shooting on Celis Street, blood spattered the sidewalk in front of an orange stucco house. In the afternoon, after the crime scene tape had come down and detectives had departed, residents washed the blood away with water. 
 
 The owner of the house, who did not want to be identified, said the family that had been shot had lived next door to him until a few years ago. 
 
 "They were a beautiful Catholic family, all the time in church," he said. 
 
 At the church, officials deferred to an archdiocese spokeswoman, who would not identify the family but said those who knew them were grieving. 
 
 "I can tell you it's a very difficult time for the parish community. They were very active and well-loved in the church," said the spokeswoman, Monica Valencia. 
 
 At the scene of the third shooting on Filmore Street, family and friends of Tobar took shelter in the shade of a church. Her daughter, Lucia Montano, said her mother had been waiting for a friend when she was shot. She and her friend planned to attend services at another nearby Catholic church, as they had each Sunday for several years. After the service, Tobar usually visited the neighborhood's elderly and disabled to help them take communion, Montano said. 
 
 "That was her life -- church and her family," Montano said of Tobar, who is survived by her husband, three children and seven grandchildren. ||||| LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Authorities are still searching for two people involved in a shooting in the West Adams District that left three people dead and 12 others injured overnight. 
 
 The mass shooting was first reported around 12:30 a.m. Saturday in the 2900 block of S. Rimpau Boulevard. 
 
 A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police Department says officers have found evidence at the scene, including multiple shell casings and possibly one of the guns used in the shooting. 
 
 First responders who arrived on scene say they found three men dead, and 12 others, both men and women, shot. Police released only a vague description of the suspects saying they are looking for a black man and a white woman. 
 
 Police say the incident unfolded at a home that had been converted into a restaurant. The location appeared to be busy last night as a celebration was underway at the location. 
 
 “I’ve never seen anything like this,” neighbor Freda Smith said. ” This is quiet over here.” 
 
 Detectives say several guns were recovered at the scene. 
 
 A witness in this tight-knit Jamaican community says he heard about 30 shots which seemed to be all outside the house. 
 
 LAPD says there have been problems at the location in the past. 
 
 “I’m actually shocked to hear this, around this area because we don’t really have any problems with anybody. Everyone knows everyone and we’re all pretty much like family so to hear that, it’s pretty much shocking and I can’t believe that it literally just happened just a few doors down from my house,” said Trason Leslie, a neighbor. 
 
 In the wake of the shooting, Mayor Eric Garcetti issued the following statement: 
 
 “Today, Los Angeles woke up to a horrifying shooting in West Adams — the latest example of a senseless gun violence epidemic that causes so much pain and sorrow in our city and across the nation. 
 
 “We have every confidence that the LAPD’s investigation will answer the many questions about what happened, and why. 
 
 “Our thoughts are with the families mourning or praying at bedsides today. We must take action against easy access to firearms and the thoughtless, indiscriminate, murderous use of them. We cannot tolerate these tragedies multiplying in communities across America.” 
 
 A lengthy investigation was underway.
– LAPD Sgt. Frank Preciado tells NBC Los Angeles it was "one of the most horrific crime scenes I've seen in a while." Three people were killed and a dozen wounded in a gun battle that broke out shortly after midnight Saturday inside a Los Angeles restaurant. Police believe it started with an argument during a birthday party at a "makeshift restaurant without permits." The Los Angeles Times describes the business—named Dilly's—as a Jamaican restaurant with a DJ and dominoes games operating out of house. Police say three people left Dilly's during the party and came back with guns. They started shooting at another group at the party, and others shot back. Diners were caught in the crossfire. “When we got there, there were three people dead and people running everywhere,” Preciado says, describing a "bloody scene with shell casings everywhere." Approximately 50 people were in the restaurant when the shooting started. "It was just 'pop, pop, pop, pop, pop," a neighbor says. "It didn't stop. It just kept going." Two people of interest have been detained, and police are looking for suspects and witnesses. Some of the wounded are in critical condition. A neighbor tells CBS Los Angeles he was shocked when he heard about the shooting. "Around this area...we don’t really have any problems with anybody," he says. "Everyone knows everyone and we’re all pretty much like family."