Long Beach fatal shooting case: 20-year-old ex-convict pleads not guilty

An ex-con pleaded not guilty Friday in the fatal shooting of a man who was sitting in a vehicle in Long Beach last month.

Saeed Wheeler, 20, of Anaheim, is charged with one count each of murder, possession of a firearm by a felon and unlawful possession of ammunition.

The charges stem from the Feb. 2 shooting of Nashon Wall, 31, of Signal Hill.

Long Beach police were called that day to the area of Atlantic Avenue and Esther Street at about 6:35 p.m. on reports of a shooting and found Wall lying unresponsive in the roadway next to his parked vehicle. He was taken to a hospital, where he died that day of his wounds.

Homicide detectives determined Wall was approached by “multiple male subjects,” one of whom produced a handgun and shot at Wall as he sat in his car, according to the Long Beach Police Department.

The suspects then ran into a nearby apartment complex. The LBPD served a search warrant at the apartment complex and recovered evidence at the scene, but no suspects were taken into custody.

Investigators later identified Wheeler as a suspect and a warrant was issued March 9 for his arrest, but he had already been taken into custody by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department on an unrelated charge.

“Detectives will continue their efforts to ensure anyone else who participated in this crime is brought to justice,” Long Beach police said in a statement released earlier this week. “The motive for the assault and whether a connection exists between the victim and suspect(s) remains under investigation.”

The criminal complaint alleges that Wheeler has a prior conviction from Orange County in March 2021 for carrying a loaded firearm on the person or in a public place.

Anyone with information on this fatal shooting case was urged to call homicide detectives at 562-570-7244, or Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.