(L.A.) Elias Oxlaj Sanchez, 55, Died in a Hospital
Case Number: 2025-15952
Los Angeles County is reporting the death of a 55-year-old Latino male that occurred in a hospital.
The coroner’s office identified the man as Elias Oxlaj Sanchez.
Cause of Death: Pasteurellosis
Other Significant Condition: Chronic Liver Disease
RIP ELIAS OXLAJ SANCHEZ ( September 30, 2025)
Formal pronouncement of death was made on Tuesday.
Out of over 170,000 death records made public by the county’s medical examiner since 1999, this appears the first time pasteurellosis has ever been mentioned as a cause of death.
Transmission of Pasteurellosis to humans most commonly occurs through animal bites or scratches, particularly from cats and dogs. However, infection can also happen without a bite; for example, through animal licks on skin abrasions or contact with infectious secretions from the animal. In rare cases, it may be acquired by petting or close contact if bacteria enter through minor, unrecognized skin breaks or mucous membranes.
Patients with chronic liver disease have impaired immune function and altered defense mechanisms, which make them particularly vulnerable to infections like Pasteurellosis. In these patients, even minor exposure—such as animal licks on skin abrasions, close contact, or petting where bacteria enter through small, unnoticed skin breaks or mucous membranes—can lead to severe infection. This increased susceptibility is due to cirrhosis-associated immune dysfunction syndrome, which compromises the body’s ability to clear bacteria and respond effectively to infections.
GoFundMe: gofundme.com/f/traslado-del-cuerpo-quien-en-vida-fuera-raul-oxlaj-sanchez
According to his family, he passed away at Adventist Health White Memorial on Cesar Chavez Avenue. They are raising funds to have his body repatriated to his home country of Guatemala.
* Note that the government investigator had initially given the decedent’s name as Raul Sanchez Oxlaj, and then as Elias Sanchez Oxlaj, and finally as Elias Oxlaj Sanchez. The fundraising page refers to the man as Raul Oxlaj Sanchez.
In the United States, ≈300,000 visits to emergency departments for animal bites or scratch wounds are recorded annually; however, not all of these are associated with infections. With respect to animal bites, 3%–18% of dog bites and 28%–80% of cat bites become infected; 50% of dog bites and 75% of cat bites are associated with the presence of Pasteurella multocida, which can be frequently detected as part of the oral microbiota in various animals such as cats, dogs, pigs, and various wild animals.
Although Pasteurella multocida is highly prevalent in the oral microbiota of pets like cats and dogs, awareness of this bacterium among general pet owners is low. Most pet owners do not commonly hear about Pasteurella despite it being a frequent pathogen associated with bite or scratch infections.