Page 3 - Detective Fields News Today

Talking to the cops could be a potential motive for murder, as we found out in tonights story. gabriel ayala was in his backyard when someone shot him in the head at close range. ayala was a gang member. this looked like a hit. at the crime scene, detective dwayne fields picked up on a telling detail. >> whoever walked up on gabriel walked right up to him. gabriel had a gun in his waist and never pulled it out. that tells me that he knew who ever killed him. >> reporter: detective fields knew ay...

But gabriel ayala walked free. >> so what did his gang think? >> reporter: they thought that he talked. >> they thought he was a rat, that he talked. >> reporter: they considered him a snitch. >> they considered him a snitch. >> reporter: richard moya knows the inner workings of gangs. the term snitch, what does that mean on the streets? >> thats somebody thats talking to the cops, law enforcement, anybody thats talking to somebody to give up the information, thats a snitch. >> reporter: what ha...

>> when he got out of jail, detective fields says gabriel ayala was a dead man walking. >> i believe the gang thought he must have had some information because his homeboy was still in jail and he wasnt. and i believe that they killed him. the truth, gabriel didnt tell us anything. they killed him for nothing. >> he didnt give up information? >> he didnt give up information and his cohort was later convicted for that murder, as he would have, had he survived. >> gabriel was killed by his own gan...

From his gang to tell me a fellow gang member killed him, it will be a tough one. >> unless one of them is arrested for something else and try to lessen their sentence? >> thats what i can hope for. >> reporter: detective fields needs someone inside ayalas gang to talk, someone with a reason to tell everything they know about who killed gabriel ayala. you will be here waiting for him? >> i will be here. im not going anywhere. >> boxing legend oscar de la hoya grew up near hollenbeck in east l.a....

At the crime scene, detective duane fields picked up on a telling detail. >> whoever walked up on gabriel walked right up to him. he had a gun in his waist and never pulled it out. that tells me he knew whoever killed him. >> reporter: detective fields knew ayalo well. it wasnt a big surprise. >> it wasnt if, it was when. >> reporter: just a matter of time? >> yeah, gabriels time was coming. he was too active, too well known, played too hard, trying to be too tough in his gang, and it caught up ...

Mistaken identity. >> and whats been tough about solving that? >> witnesses. witnesses. >> no ones coming forward? >> no ones coming forward. >> did they think he was his brother? >> i think so. >> looks like they may have an informant. >> detectives are still looking for his killer. >> see if we can find -- >> reporter: detective fields needs an eyewitness or another gang member to identify ronalds killer. >> people arent -- the community you talk to people and they say, look, people dont come ...

And united states marine corps shaves their heads. and most of the thugs out here, most of the gangsters out here have shaved heads. unfortunately hes male hispanic in los angeles with a shaved head. and they thought he was a gang member. and theres no evidence to lead me to believe that he was. wrong place, wrong time, mistaken identity. >> and whats been tough about solving that? >> witnesses. witnesses. >> no ones coming forward? >> no ones coming forward. >> did they think he was his brother...

Have shaved heads. unfortunately hes male hispanic in los angeles with a shaved head. and they thought he was a gang member. and theres no evidence to lead me to believe that he was. wrong place, wrong time, mistaken identity. >> and whats been tough about solving that? >> witnesses. witnesses. >> no ones coming forward? >> no ones coming forward. >> did they think he was his brother? >> i think so. >> looks like they may have an informant. >> detectives are still looking for his killer. >> see ...

You see that same green honda take off. >> and no ones come forward with details about who was in the car? >> they have a lot of names and i think theyre probably involved but i cant put them behind the wheel. i cant put them holding the gun. >> you need an eyewitness? >> i need an eyewitness. >> detective fields is convinced stevens friends know who shot him. his friends saw it? >> what im aware of, at least three, four of his friends saw it. none of them came forward. >> not a single one. >> n...

>> its not an easy case to solve. >> this veteran detective knows every game in the sprawling hole len beck neighborhood. what was the first thing you did? >> we look on the ground for casings and look in the air for cam ras. >> for cameras. >> theres cameras everywhere in the city. >> the camera was working and recorded this tape. >> it showed me a vehicle, a green honda drive up the street, a short time later turn around, you hear shots being fired and you see that same green honda take off. >...