Case of Janitor and Skateboarder Scuffle at a Standstill

Two "unwilling participants'' in the case of a tussle between a South Pasadena Middle School janitor and a trespassing skateboarder have ground the detectives' investigation to a halt.   

One month after a You Tube video showed Lupe Garcia and a teen-ager getting into a physical altercation, South Pasadena Police still have not identified a victim or a suspect. Police have identified the other trespassing teens. None are from South Pasadena, authorities have said. 

"We have two unwilling participants. We know who [the skateboarder in the scuffle] is, we have tried to contact him through Facebook, but we've not been able to talk to him or the janitor,'' Det. Sgt. Robert Bartl said Tuesday.

Garcia, he added, is being represented by an attorney, but thus far the only statement police have from Garcia, 58, is the one he gave following the 3 p.m. incident at SPMS on June 4. 

In that statement, Bartl said, Garcia alleged to have been beat in the head with skateboards by three teens. But the 1-minute, 47-second video posted by Mango Skates showed Garcia as the aggressor, he said. Is there more video elsewhere? Was the video edited? These are questions police would like answered, if the janitor or the skateboarder would get back to them. 

Trespassing skateboarders are a problem at South Pas schools, Superintendent Joel Shapiro has said. To read more about that, click here. 

Bartl said Garcia's attorney told him he was working on “admin paperwork and photos,'' and when his client was ready to talk, the attorney would call Bartl. 

"That was three weeks ago,'' he said. 

Related:

Police Investigate Tussle Between Teen, Janitor

Superintendent: Skateboarders are a Problem at South Pas Schools

Police: These are not South Pas Kids

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