While authorities investigate two fatal shootings at separate gas stations just days apart in Pico Rivera – including one that killed a 13-year-old boy – friends have identified the first victim, a beloved 36-year-old baseball coach.
The violence unfolded on Aug. 21 about 9 p.m. at a Shell gas station at the corner of Washington and Passons boulevards, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department officials.
Marc Sweet, the victim, was gunned down in what appears to be the first of two random attacks, though investigators have stated that they do not believe the incidents are connected.
LASD did not have a description of the shooter, but the suspect was believed to have fled the area on foot.
Just two days after Sweet’s death, on Aug. 23, at a 76 gas station at Rosemead and Whittier boulevards, about two miles away from the first shooting, a 13-year-old boy, identified by the L.A. County Medical Examiner’s Office as Saith Toledo Mendez, was fatally shot for unknown reasons.
The teen’s mother, who worked at the gas station, regularly brought her son to work because she was homeless and did not want to leave him alone in the shelter they were staying in, according to a friend.
The gunman in that shooting also fled the scene on foot.
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Marc Sweet, 36, was fatally gunned down on Aug. 21, 2025, in what appears to be the first of two seemingly random shootings at Pico Rivera gas stations. (viewer pic) -
Marc Sweet, 36, was fatally gunned down on Aug. 21, 2025, in what appears to be the first of two seemingly random shootings at Pico Rivera gas stations. (viewer pic) -
Marc Sweet, 36, was fatally gunned down on Aug. 21, 2025, in what appears to be the first of two seemingly random shootings at Pico Rivera gas stations. (viewer pic) -
Marc Sweet, 36, was fatally gunned down on Aug. 21, 2025, in what appears to be the first of two seemingly random shootings at Pico Rivera gas stations. (viewer pic) -
Marc Sweet, 36, was fatally gunned down on Aug. 21, 2025, in what appears to be the first of two seemingly random shootings at Pico Rivera gas stations. (viewer pic) -
Marc Sweet, 36, was fatally gunned down on Aug. 21, 2025, in what appears to be the first of two seemingly random shootings at Pico Rivera gas stations. (viewer pic)
On Monday night in Tarzana, friends gather to remember Sweet, a man they described as a son, brother, boyfriend, role model and mentor.
“He wasn’t just a coach, he was family,” Ny Barajas, who was coached by Sweet in Encino’s 365 Youth Baseball organization. “It felt like he was at my side at all times. If I had nobody else to go to – mom, dad, brother, family – it was Marc. He just meant the world to me.”
Another one of Sweet’s ballplayers, Logan Sorrentino, described Sweet as someone who always had positive words and advice during challenging moments.
“I’m a guy that’s always running pretty hard, and he just had a way about him, he knew how to calm people,” Sweet’s friend, Dave Waco, told KTLA. “He had a presence about him. You talk about connecting with people, he’s a guy that connected with all ages. He was willing to give a little bit more of himself first.”
The first annual Marc Sweet Memorial Baseball Tournament is planned for September, which will be held to raise money for charities and scholarships.
The shootings have residents in the L.A. County community of Pico Rivera on edge, particularly because the suspects in both shootings remain at large.
Anyone with information pertaining to the two shootings is asked to contact the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department’s Homicide Bureau: 323-890-5500.
To remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or visit www.lacrimestoppers.org
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
