A California man whose wife and in-laws are missing has been arrested on a murder charge after a dismembered torso was discovered in a dumpster at a strip mall.
Samuel Haskell, 35, of Tarzana, was arrested on one count of murder at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday — around four hours after a homeless person scavenging for recyclables stumbled on the torso, ABC 7 reported.
“A dismembered female wrapped in a plastic bag. It was just outside the dumpster,” LAPD Detective Efren Gutierrez told reporters.
Haskell’s wife, Mei Haskell, and her parents — mom Yanxiang Wang and dad Gaoshen Li – were already reported missing before the gruesome find, officials said.
Authorities are still working to identify the torso, but believe it is Haskell’s wife. Her parents are still missing.
“If a murder suspect is dismembering a body, it’s to delay identification,” LAPD homicide Detective Efren Guttierez said, KTLA reported.
The night before the torso was discovered, some reported to police seeing a body in a black bag near Haskell’s home but when officers arrived the bag was gone, according to the outlet.
About 6:15 a.m. Wednesday, the homeless person found the human remains, which had been placed inside a duffel bag and tossed into a dumpster about five miles from the Coldstream Terrace home.
Investigators said there were no obvious signs of identification like tattoos on the torso, which they don’t believe was there for more than a couple of days.
The commercial area includes two banks, a hair salon and a family-style restaurant.
Police located the couple’s three kids at school on Wednesday and turned them over to the Department of Children and Family Services, ABC 7 reported.
People who were in the area during the discovery were shocked to hear about the remains.
“I think it was kind of weird to drive up and be blocked off along the boulevard and into the little center over here and to find out that there were body parts there … in Encino!” one resident told ABC 7.
“We’ve had a lot of crime in Encino over the last couple of months,” the person added.
Investigators are still seeking tips and hoped surveillance video will shed more light in the probe.
Haskell is being held on $2 million bail at the Valley Jail in Van Nuys.
