California Man Accused Of Murdering Wife And Her Parents After Torso Found In Dumpster

Samuel Bond Haskell, Jr., 35, was arrested on November 8 after the torso of a body believed to be his wife Mei was found by a homeless man in a dumpster five miles from the home the couple shared in Tarzana, California. Mei’s parents, 72-year-old Gaoshan Li and 64-year-old YanXiang Wang, lived with them, and they are also missing. Authorities suspect Haskell killed his wife and in-laws.

Mei Li Haskell, who was 37 when she was allegedly killed, and Samuel have three children between the ages of 6 and 12, and they were found safe at their school. They are now in the custody of the Department of Child and Family Services, reported the Independent.

Haskell is currently being held without bail. He has been charged with three counts of murder with special circumstances of committing multiple murders, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. He could face life in prison without the chance of parole if he is ultimately convicted of the crimes.

Haskell is the son of Hollywood producer Sam Haskell, Sr., and the former Miss Mississippi Mary Donnelly Haskell.

CNN reported that a day laborer who was hired by Haskell, Jr. to remove heavy black trash bags from his home called 911 after being horrified to find body parts in one of the bags. The day laborers returned the bags and said they didn’t want to be involved. That same day someone photographed Haskell, Jr. putting a large trash bag in a dumpster near his home. A woman’s torso was found in that same dumpster the next day.

“We suspect that the torso...is the body of Mei Haskell. No other bags containing body parts or remains have been recovered to date, but I don’t need a body to charge a murder,” Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman said, according to the Associated Press. “There were items of evidence in the house that indicated he dismembered the bodies.”

CNN reported that Haskell, Jr. will be formally arraigned on December 8.