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Man dies after being pepper-sprayed on LA Metro bus, person of interest photo released

LAPD search for man involved in deadly pepper spray incident
LAPD search for man involved in deadly pepper spray incident 01:42

Police released a photo Saturday of a person of interest involved with the death of a man who died after being pepper-sprayed during an argument on a Metro bus in Koreatown Thursday night.

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LAPD West Bureau Homicide detectives are asking for the public's assistance in identifying the person pictured who was involved in the Metro bus death. LAPD

The Los Angeles Police Department's West Bureau Homicide detectives are asking for the public's assistance in identifying the person pictured. 

Officers were called to the intersection of Western Avenue and Olympic Boulevard around 10:49 p.m. regarding an assault with a deadly weapon, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

When officers arrived, they learned the two men had been involved in an argument, and at some point, the suspect pepper-sprayed the victim and then ran off the bus, police said.

The victim died at the scene. Video surveillance showed police on the bus gathering evidence from the fight.

The suspect, who police said is in his 30s, ran away in an unknown direction.

"Safety is our no. 1 priority and over the past year Metro has seen an overall, month-over-month reduction in serious crimes on our transit system due to our multilayered public safety plan," Metro officials said in a statement.

On Monday, police announced that they had arrested a suspect connected to the man's death. 

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