Authorities said a 20-year-old man she had been dating forced his way into the residence before the fatal shooting.
ARCADIA, Calif. — A 15-year-old girl was fatally shot inside an Arcadia residence Thursday after authorities said a 20-year-old man she had been dating forced his way inside, then fled before officers arrived and later suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound in Pasadena.
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the teenager as Mina Kurdian. Authorities identified the suspect as Paul Anthony Cruz Jr., 20. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said Cruz and Kurdian had been in a dating relationship and that Cruz forced entry into the residence before the shooting. Investigators had not publicly announced a motive as of Friday.
Arcadia police responded shortly after 11 a.m. Oct. 22 to an apartment complex in the 800 block of West Huntington Drive after receiving a report of a disturbance and possible shooting. Police said a caller reported that a man inside the residence had fired a gun. Officers arrived after the man had left and found Kurdian suffering from a gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau took over the investigation and identified Cruz as the suspect. Authorities said he left Arcadia after the shooting and traveled several miles west to Pasadena. Investigators have not released a detailed account of what happened inside the residence immediately before the gunfire or said whether other people were present.
About an hour after the Arcadia shooting, Pasadena police officers located Cruz near South Arroyo Parkway. Authorities said officers were preparing to contact him when he suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was taken to a hospital in critical condition. NBC Los Angeles reported Friday that Cruz remained hospitalized.
The shootings created two separate law enforcement scenes in neighboring cities. Arcadia police and sheriff’s homicide investigators worked at the residence where Kurdian was killed, while Pasadena officers investigated the second shooting. Authorities continued working to establish the full sequence of events and collect evidence connected to both locations.
Officials have described Cruz as the man Kurdian had been dating, although some news reports have referred to him as her boyfriend. Authorities have not publicly detailed the status of the relationship immediately before the shooting. Published accounts also differed over whether the relationship may recently have ended, and investigators had not publicly confirmed that detail.
Kurdian’s name was released Friday by the county medical examiner after authorities initially identified the victim only as a juvenile girl. News organizations reporting from the neighborhood said residents had previously seen Kurdian and Cruz together, but those accounts did not establish what happened before the shooting. Investigators have not released information showing why Kurdian was targeted.
Cruz was not listed in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s online inmate system Friday afternoon, according to NBC Los Angeles, while he remained hospitalized in critical condition. Authorities had not announced criminal charges as of the latest reports reviewed. Any future criminal proceedings would depend on his medical condition and the continuing homicide investigation.
The Sheriff’s Department continued investigating Kurdian’s death Friday. No motive had been publicly confirmed, and officials had not announced additional findings about events leading up to the shooting or a timetable for any possible court proceedings.
Author note: Last updated October 23, 2026.