Hollywood executive's son accused in murders of wife and in-laws dies in custody, officials say
Samuel Bond Haskell was charged in 2023 with the killings of his wife Mei Haskell, 37 and her parents, 64-year-old Yanxiang Wang and 72-year-old Gaoshan Li. The 37-year-old Haskell is the son of Hollywood agent and producer Samuel Haskell.
Detectives with the sheriff's department responded to the Twin Towers Correctional Facility on July 12 around 4:20 a.m. to investigate the death of Haskell. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office will determine the cause of death.
Haskell, a cinematographer and producer, had pleaded not guilty earlier to murder charges, which included a special circumstance allegation of multiple murders. He faced a maximum of life in prison without the possibility of parole had he been convicted as charged.
The victims lived with Haskell and the couple's three young children in their Tarzana home and were last seen around Nov. 6, 2023.
Haskell had allegedly hired four day laborers on Nov. 7 to remove several heavy black plastic trash bags from his home. One of the workers opened one of the bags and called 911 after allegedly seeing body parts, according to the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office.
Haskell was arrested the following day after someone rummaging through a dumpster in Encino came across a body part and called police. Haskell was apparently caught on video dumping the trash bags from the back of his Tesla into the dumpster.
The dismembered body parts were positively identified as Mei Haskell's remains, with the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner listing her cause of death as "deferred."
No other information surrounding Haskell's jail death was available at this time.
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