Man charged in murder of wife, in-laws in Tarzana
A man who allegedly tossed dismembered body parts into an Encino trash bin was charged today with three counts of murder in connection with the disappearance of his wife and in-laws.
Samuel Bond Haskell, 35, of Tarzana, was charged with the killings of his wife Mei Haskell, 37, and her parents, 64-year-old Yanxiang Wang and 72-year-old Gaoshen Li, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
An arraignment hearing for Haskell was delayed until Dec. 8 in downtown Los Angeles.
The victims, who lived in a Tarzana home in the 4100 block of Coldstream Terrace with Haskell and the couple's three young children, were last seen on or about Nov. 6, authorities said. The children were found and are being cared for by family members, police said.
He was arrested following the discovery of human remains early Wednesday morning inside a trash bin near Ventura Boulevard and Rubio Way in Encino. Police have said they suspect the remains are those of Mei Haskell, but forensic testing was still being performed.
Last Tuesday, Haskell allegedly tried to pay day laborers to remove bags from his home with what they realized were body parts and, when that failed, the defendant was caught on video dumping the bags out of the back of his Tesla into the trash bin, according to the District Attorney's Office.
The day laborers told NBC4 the contents of the bags felt like meat of some kind.
"When we picked up the bags, we could tell they weren't rocks,'' one of the workers said in Spanish.
Haskell remains jailed without bail.
"These shocking and gruesome crimes have sent shockwaves through our community,'' District Attorney George Gascón said in a statement. "We stand with the victims' loved ones during this unimaginably difficult time and will do everything in our power to ensure justice is served. Our Major Crimes Division will work tirelessly to bring about a prosecution that reflects the severity of this devastating crime."
If convicted as charged, Haskell would face a maximum sentence of life without the possibility of parole, prosecutors said.
