1-year-old boy shot dead in father's arms on Los Angeles sidewalk

LOS ANGELES – A gunman on a bicycle shot a father as he cradled his 1-year-old boy in his arms on a South Los Angeles street, killing the infant, police said Tuesday.

The 24-year-old father was attacked Monday evening on a sidewalk in an area that has been plagued by gang violence, police said. The gunman appeared to be a 15- to 17-year-old boy in a hoodie sweatshirt, police said.

He rode past the father and fired several shots, police Capt. Phillip Tingirides told KCAL-TV.

The infant was shot in the stomach and died at a hospital following surgery. The father was struck in the shoulder and remained hospitalized in stable condition, police said.

Their names were not immediately released.

Police have not released a motive, though Tingirides said investigators were leaning heavily toward gang rivalry. The attacker was black and the father is Latino, authorities said.

A conflict between black and Latino gangs has led to more than a half-dozen killings in the area in the last year, police said.