Man Charged With Capital Murder in Shooting That Killed 8-Year-Old Boy

POMONA, CA – UPDATE: TUESDAY, MARCH 28, 2:15 p.m.

A 35-year-old man was charged today with murder and other counts for allegedly firing shots at Pomona home on multiple occasions, killing an 8-year-old boy who was inside while visiting in February.

Sengchan Houl is charged with the Feb. 20 killing of Jonah Hwang, who was shot in the 1100 block of West 11th Street while inside the home with his family, visiting friends for dinner.

Police have said the family living at the residence where the shootings occurred had no gang ties.
The murder charge includes the special circumstance allegation of murder committed while firing from a motor vehicle.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office will decide later whether to seek the death penalty against Houl, who is being held without bail while awaiting arraignment April 26 in a Pomona courtroom.

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Along with the murder charge, Houl is charged with one count of shooting from a motor vehicle and four counts of shooting at an inhabited dwelling.

Houl, of Pomona, was arrested about 11:40 a.m. Sunday.

At a news conference Monday afternoon, Pomona police Chief Paul Capraro said there were four shootings since January at the house, the most recent on Saturday about 7:15 a.m., but authorities still have not uncovered a motive for the shootings.

"On three of the shootings, the house was unoccupied," Capraro said. "Evidence suggests that all four of these shootings are related."

Capraro said investigators were able to identify the vehicle believed to have been used in all four shootings and, with the assistance of several agencies, arrested Houl on Sunday.

"Mr. Houl was stopped (while) driving the suspect vehicle that we had identified. ... He was stopped while leaving his house in an unincorporated area (near) the city of Pomona. In his possession at the time of his arrest was a firearm that we believe was used in the shootings."

Capraro said he didn't know how long the family had been living at the home, but he believes they are the original owners of the house. They have since moved out.

"If they're the original owners, it obviously couldn't have been something that happened prior to them," he said.

Capraro said police are continuing to investigate, and will try to determine if anyone else may have been involved.

He said the suspect apparently did not have an extensive criminal record, and it was unknown if he was involved in criminal organizations.

Asked if he can conclude that since there were four shootings at the house since January that Jonah definitely wasn't the intended target, Capraro was measured in his response.

"We're still looking into that as a possibility; however, going back to the same house for four times there's something related to that that (is) more probable than Jonah being the subject of the shooting. However, we're not positive of that yet."

The youth's family brought him home from a Taiwanese orphanage less than three years ago. The residents hosting the dinner were married school teachers with two children of their own, according to neighbors.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on March 8 approved a $10,000 reward, and another $20,000 reward was offered by the Pomona Police Department and the city of Pomona. It's unclear whether anyone is in line for those rewards, now that an arrest has been made.

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TUESDAY, MARCH 28, 8:43 a.m.

A man is scheduled to be arraigned today on a charge of murder in the shooting death of an 8-year-old boy in a Pomona residence.

Sengchan Houl, 35, of Pomona was arrested about 11:40 a.m. Sunday and booked on suspicion of murder in the death of Jonah Hwang, who was killed on Feb. 20 in the 1100 block of West 11th Street. Houl is being held in lieu of $2 million bail and is scheduled to be asked Tuesday to enter a plea.

The boy was inside the home with his family, visiting friends for dinner, when he was struck by the bullet. Police have said the family living at the residence where the shootings occurred had no gang ties.

At a news conference Monday afternoon, Pomona police Chief Paul Capraro said there have been a total of four shootings since January at the house, the most recent on Saturday about 7:15 a.m., but authorities don't know why.

"On three of the shootings, the house was unoccupied," Capraro said. "Evidence suggests that all four of these shootings are related."

• PREVIOUS: SGV House Where Boy, 8, Killed in Drive-By Was Previous Target: Police

Capraro said investigators were able to identify the vehicle believed to have been used in all four shootings and, with the assistance of several agencies, arrested Houl on Sunday.

"Mr Houl was stopped (while) driving the suspect vehicle that we had identified. ... He was stopped while leaving his house in an unincorporated area in the city of Pomona. In his possession at the time of his arrest was a firearm that we believe was used in the shootings."

Capraro said he didn't know how long the family had been living at the home, but he believes they are the original owners of the house. They have since moved out.

"If they're the original owners, it obviously couldn't have been something that happened prior to them," he said.

A motive for the shootings was unclear. Capraro said police are continuing to investigate, and will try to determine if anyone else may have been involved.

He said the suspect apparently did not have an extensive criminal record, and it was unknown if he was involved in criminal organizations.

Asked if he can conclude that since there were four shootings at the house since January that Jonah definitely wasn't the intended target, Capraro was measured in his response.

"We're still looking into that as a possibility; however, going back to the same house for four times there's something related to that that (is) more probable than Jonah being the subject of the shooting. However, we're not positive of that yet."

The youth's family brought him home from a Taiwanese orphanage less than three years ago. The residents hosting the dinner were married school teachers with two children of their own, according to neighbors.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on March 8 approved a $10,000 reward, and another $20,000 reward was offered by the Pomona Police Department and the city of Pomona. It's unclear whether anyone is in line for those rewards, now that an arrest has been made.

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--City News Service/Shutterstock image