Hollywood CEO’s son, accused of killing his wife and her parents, died in what he seemed to be suicide over the weekend, just days before the court hearing decides whether he should be a court.
Samuel Bond Haskel IV, 37, was found on Saturday in his cell at the Gemini Kulie prison in the city center with what investigators believe they have been self-inflicted injuries, according to sources of law enforcement.
Haskel was arrested and charged with in November 2023 for suspicion of killing his wife, May Haskel, 37; and her mother Yansiang Wang, 64; And stepmother, Gaosan, 72.
The Los Angeles County Bureau has announced that it is investigating Haskel’s death and the reason will be determined by the Cabinet of La County Medical Review.
Haskel’s body was discovered at 4:20 Saturday, according to Sheriff’s employees.
His death was 26 in the Los Angeles County Prison system this year.
This comes after the district prisons had what district head Janice Khan called “one of the most deadly begins with a year in the recent history of the prison system.” In the first 20 weeks of 2025, 20 deprived persons were killed – more than twice as much as death last year, including three in one day.
“Our prisons are in crisis,” Khan said. “We have seen an alarming increase in the deaths of people who are in custody and care. We must take urgent, decisive action to save lives.”
An investigation into 2024 discovered a common thread extending to all the causes of death for those in custody: neglect, both by the guards and the medical staff.
Haskel had to have a preliminary hearing on Monday on the three charges of murder in special circumstances. Previously, he pleaded innocent. He was confronted with life without the possibility of conditional release if he was sentenced to one of the three points.
Haskel, his wife and her parents lived in a one -storey home in the 4100 block of Coldstream Terrace in Tarzana.
Police claim that on November 7, 2023, Haskel tried to make workers remove the bags from his home that contain what they said were parts of the body. The workers who said they had paid them $ 500 and initially said they pulled out rocks, said the bags were feeling wet and soft, like meat. The workers tried to return the money and contacted the police, but by the time the employees arrived, the bags had no.
The next morning, a man found a human torso packed in a bag of Dufel in a landfill in ENCHINO parking near Ventura Boulevard and Avenue Rubio, about five miles from Haskel’s home, police said.
Haskel was arrested after the terrible discovery. Inside Haskel’s house, detectives have found blood and other evidence corresponding to the murder and dispensation, according to investigators.
County Los Angeles Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman told TMZ that Haskel had never revealed to the authorities the location of the remains of his laws.
“The only remains they found was literally the torso of his wife, who was dismembered,” Hochman said.
LA’s best prosecutor said investigators have recovered a tree with blood to the three victims, a cutting saw, a machete, bullets and a .357 pistol in a rental car.
“They found blood on mattresses, on the bedding throughout the house,” Hochman said, adding that it was a “rocky solid case”.
The defendant’s father, Sam Haskel, won Emmy and is CEO at the William Morris Talents Agency before launching his own production company.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.