A dispute in a Baton Rouge shopping plaza parking lot turned deadly on the late afternoon of Sunday, February 25, 2024. At about 5:50 p.m. in the 12000 block of Florida Boulevard, within the Florida East Plaza, a verbal and physical altercation was reported before a fatal gunshot struck 21-year-old Cesar Ayala-Ortiz. Witnesses saw several people arguing in the parking lot and then the shooting; the suspect fled on foot before police arrived.

Officers found Ayala-Ortiz with a gunshot wound and emergency personnel were unable to save him. Homicide detectives from the Baton Rouge Police Department’s Violent Crimes Unit are investigating. Several witnesses were detained and questioned, but as of the initial reports no arrests had been announced and no suspect had been publicly identified.

Anyone who witnessed the confrontation or has information about the shooting is urged to contact the Violent Crimes Unit or Crime Stoppers. Did anyone see what happened in or around the Florida East Plaza that afternoon?