LOS ANGELES, July 5 (Xinhua) -- Three people were killed and three others critically injured in an early morning shooting Thursday in Los Angeles, the second largest city of the United States, Police said.

The shooting occurred around 12:30 a.m local time in the Westlake neighborhood near downtown LA. A man and a woman were pronounced dead at the scene and the third person died later in nearby hospital.

The victims were part of a group attending a Fourth of July party in the front yard of a home in the neighborhood. They were behind a wrought iron gate when two people not attending the celebration approached and got into a confrontation with some members of the group. At some point during the confrontation the two people opened fire on the group, a local news outlet, KTLA 5 channel reported.

The suspects fled after the shooting and police are continuing investigation.

Some local news outlets said that it was an apparent gang-related shooting but it has not been confirmed by police.