(L.A.) Mei Haskell, 37, Died From Homicidal Violence

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Case Number: 2023-15344

Los Angeles County is reporting the death of a 37-year-old Asian female.

The coroner’s office has identified the woman as Mei Haskell.

Manner of Death: Homicide

Cause of Death: Homicidal Violence

RIP MEI HASKELL (October 16, 1986 – November 8, 2023)

Formal pronouncement of death was made on Wednesday at 6:55 a.m.

The Department of Medical Examiner formally disclosed the manner and cause of death on March 5.

The place of death was given as “parking lot.” According to the DME’s definition, place of death refers to where the body was found, not necessarily where it actually expired. Based on news reports, one can surmise that the decedent had died elsewhere before dismembered body parts were disposed of in a parking lot by her husband.

Samuel Bond Haskell, 35, of Tarzana, has been charged with the killings of his wife Mei Haskell, 37, and her parents, 64-year-old Yanxiang Wang and 72-year-old Gaoshen Li.

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 November 6.

Haskell was arrested following the discovery on Nov. 8 of human remains inside a trash bin near Ventura Boulevard and Rubio Way in Encino. Police had said they suspected the remains were those of Mei Haskell. Their suspicions were confirmed by the county’s Department of Medical Examiner on December 18.

The autopsy “revealed a dismembered torso with a single sharp force injury at the base of the anterior neck.”

“The head, majority of the neck, and majority of all 4 extremities were absent. The bone margins at the amputation sites were remarkably smooth. This suggests a sharp powered tool was likely used to perform these amputations.

“There was no definitive indication that the dismemberment occurred antemortem, however, the possibility that the head and neck removal was initiated prior to death cannot be entirely excluded…”

The medical examiner found no fatal injuries on the torso.