Authorities spent Monday tracing a disturbing and heartbreaking series of events that resulted in the deaths and injuries of a Woodland Hills family spread out across Los Angeles County.
The tragic chain of events began with a woman killing her husband at their home in the Valley, leaving her two young daughters on the 405 Freeway — one of whom tragically lost her life — and then crashing her car into a tree in Redondo Beach, according to a law enforcement source who requested anonymity due to the ongoing investigation.
The first indication of the family’s tragedy was discovered around 4:30 a.m. on Monday.
Law enforcement officers were summoned to the northbound 405 Freeway near the Sepulveda Boulevard/Howard Hughes Parkway exit, as reported by the California Highway Patrol. An infant girl approximately 5 or 6 months old was found on the roadway, while a 9-year-old girl was located on the right shoulder.
The infant was sadly pronounced dead at the scene, and the older girl was transported to a hospital with moderate injuries, the law enforcement source revealed. A witness called 911 after spotting a black sedan near where the girls were discovered, according to media accounts.
Shortly thereafter, around 5 a.m., authorities in Redondo Beach were alerted to a car that had crashed into a tree on Pacific Coast Highway near Vincent Street. The female driver was declared dead at the scene.
Initially, there was uncertainty about the connection between the two incidents.
However, approximately two hours later, police arrived at the deceased woman’s residence on Variel Avenue in Woodland Hills, where the full extent of the tragedy unfolded.
Inside the house, law enforcement officers found the woman’s husband fatally stabbed. Residents of the Montecito Apartments, where the couple lived, mentioned that the pair had a tumultuous relationship and had a heated argument before the woman departed with the children, as detailed by KCAL News.
The identities of the family members have not been disclosed by authorities.
