LOS ANGELES – A 17-year-old male died last weekend when he fell from an iconic $588 million bridge that opened in Los Angeles in July 2022. Law enforcement authorities said the teen was in the process of sharing his climb up the 6th Street Bridge via social media.
The teen fell “when climbing upon one of the arches, in order to post, apparently, a social media broadcast,” Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore said on Tuesday, while meeting with the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners. “He slipped and fell to his death.
According to the chief, officers responded to the fall at the 6th Street Viaduct around 2 a.m. Saturday, May 20 and found the teen, who was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. LAPD has not released his name and they did not say what social media platform the teen was using prior to his fatal fall, FOX 11 Los Angeles reported.
“Tragically we see that location, while it has spawned a great deal of pride in Los Angeles, it has also unfortunately served as a backdrop now for tragedies such as this,” Moore revealed. “Our added patrols will continue at that location … to counter such reckless actions.”
Family of the deceased teen identified him as Anthony Luna. His father, Paul Luna, thanked well-wishers who said his son made friends “smile through hard times.” He also denied that Anthony was making a video to post on social media.
“That’s false information, 100 percent,” Paul declared, despite the fact that Anthony was filming the ascent up one of the arches with his friends.
Since the landmark overpass first opened, LAPD has been forced to close it several times as it quickly became a hotspot for street racing, graffiti and illegal street-takeovers, according to FOX 11.
The bridge has also been the site of several social media stunts as well as a homicide scene in January during the unauthorized filming of a music video.
