Ballots were found burned and a voting center in Long Beach was vandalized in what could be two separate acts of attempted election interference ahead of the June 2 primary election, the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder announced Sunday.

The burned ballots were discovered inside an official ballot drop box at the Department of Public Social Services-Civic Center in Los Angeles, during routine ballot collections, according to the county registrar-recorder.

“Staff identified a limited number of vote-by-mail ballots that appeared to have sustained fire-related damage,” the county registrar-recorder said.

The fire happened sometime between the last ballot collection on Saturday and first ballot collection on Sunday, resulting in a “small number” of affected ballots, officials said.

On Sunday morning, vandalism was found at the voting center in Cesar E. Chavez Park in Long Beach. Election workers responded and voting operations were not disrupted, according to the county registrar-recorder.

The county registrar-recorder said that it is “carefully reviewing both incidents and working to identify any voters who may have been affected.”

Voters whose ballots were affected by the fire will be contacted directly and given information on how to recast their vote. Replacement ballots are a possibility, the county registrar-recorder said.

The county registrar-recorder has filed reports with the Los Angeles Police Department following the incidents. Los Angeles County Clerk Dean Logan issued a statement Sunday reminding the public that attempts to disrupt voting, damage election infrastructure, interfere with voters, or vandalize election facilities “will not be tolerated.”

“Our responsibility is to protect voters and ensure every eligible voter has the opportunity to cast a ballot,” Logan said. “Any attempt to interfere with voting or election operations is taken seriously. We will continue working closely with law enforcement and other partners to safeguard the voting process and ensure voters can participate with confidence.”

The public is encouraged to report any suspicious activity involving election materials, election facilities, or voting operations to the county registrar-recorder by calling (800) 815-2666.

A man was found stabbed to death in Huntington Park early Sunday morning, authorities said.

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department homicide investigators are assisting the Huntington Park Police Department with the investigation after the deadly stabbing was reported around 12:03 a.m. in the 3500 block of Florence Avenue.

Officials said the victim, described only as an adult man, was pronounced dead at the scene.

No information about a possible suspect or the circumstances leading up to the stabbing was immediately released.

The investigation remained ongoing Sunday morning.

Anyone with information about the incident is encouraged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500.

Anonymous tips can be submitted to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers by calling 800-222-TIPS (8477) or online at lacrimestoppers.org.

Juan Cuevas, 26, was shot and killed near Beverly Boulevard and St. Andrews Place in Koreatown in January 2019. Seven years later, his parents, Cesar and Patricia Cuevas, returned to the neighborhood this weekend to hang flyers, hoping someone will provide information about the unsolved killing.

In March, the Los Angeles Police Department announced a $50,000 reward for details leading to the suspect’s identity, arrest and conviction.

The killing remains unsolved and the suspect has not been identified. Juan was the oldest of four children and the only son in his family. He also worked for the family’s plumbing business with his father, Cesar.

“He was my partner,” Cesar said. “He used to work with me all the time.”

Surveillance video obtained by the Los Angeles Police Department captured the moments before and after the shooting. Investigators reported that a dark-colored Honda Accord pulled up just after 10:20 p.m. the night of the incident. A passenger then exited the vehicle, approached Juan and opened fire. Another camera recorded Juan running into a nearby liquor store in search of help. He collapsed inside and was taken to the hospital, where he later died.

The family said that it continues to experience profound grief over Juan’s death. The family has set up a GoFundMe page in hopes of raising awareness of the case.

“We are dying together,” Cesar said. “The time is coming and going and we are dying together.”

Juan’s mother said that her son’s death is an ongoing struggle.

“So far we haven’t had any answers,” Patricia said. “Seven years. It hasn’t been easy for our house, our family, living with this in our hearts, knowing that person is around.”

The family noted that multiple detectives have been assigned to the case over the years, but they feel they have received limited information about the investigation.

“It was my only son,” Cesar said. “I got three daughters. It was my first son and we haven’t heard anything from the police.”

The family said that investigators seem overwhelmed handling the case.

“All they say is, ‘We have so many cases we have to work on,’” Cesar said. “‘Yours is on our list, but we have a lot to work on,’ and that’s their answer.”

In their search for answers, the Cuevas family reached out to people who knew Juan, but they said no one has been willing to talk.

“Nobody has said anything,” he added. “Too many people say ‘I know your son’ and nobody wants to say anything.”

The family hopes the recently announced $50,000 reward will bring renewed attention to the case. Watch the full report from KTLA’s Jillian Smukler in the video at the top of this story.

All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by KTLA. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat information into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by KTLA staff before being published.