David White, left, and Anthony White, brothers of Herbert White, appear at the LAPD's
Newton Area police station with their mother, Elizabeth Peterson. |
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LA slaying victim's kind nature may have cost him his life
Police are looking for a York, Pa., couple in connection with the death of Herbert Tracy White, whose body was found dismembered in a hotel room near skid row on Nov. 29.
by Nardine Saad
Los Angeles Times
December 9, 2010
During Herbert Tracy White's 15 years of sobriety, he liked to reach out and help others who were battling alcoholism. The holidays, his brother said, were White's "busy season."
His brother and other family members said they believe it was White's desire to help other alcoholics that cost him his life at a skid row hotel late last month.
On what would have been White's 50th birthday, his family gathered with police Wednesday to ask for the public's help in catching his suspected killers. |
A maid at the Continental Hotel discovered White's severed limbs stuffed in a backpack on the morning of Nov. 29. The rest of his body was found wrapped in a blanket under a bed in the hotel room.
The Pennsylvania couple who had rented the $40-a-night room — Edward Garcia Jr., 36, and his wife, Melissa Hope Garcia, 25, are wanted on suspicion of murder and torture. The couple is considered armed and dangerous, police said.
White's family said his kind nature often meant he left family functions early to provide rides or otherwise help alcoholics in the middle of the night. He had told his brother that he was especially busy during the holidays because people tended to backslide and drink.
White's wife, Annie Coty White, 73, said her husband left their Hollywood home early on the morning of Nov. 28 after receiving a phone call from a person asking him for a ride.
"I asked who it was and he said, 'Oh you know those crazy Hollywood types,'" she said. "My husband hated drunk drivers."
Police suspect White met the Garcias in Hollywood, befriended them and gave them money, said Det. Richard Arciniega of the Los Angeles Police Department. At some point, White accompanied the Garcias to the Continental Hotel, a white brick three-story walk-up, where the couple had been staying for several days.
On the night of the slaying, a hotel security guard reported receiving a complaint about a commotion in the Garcias' room, police said. But when the guard went to investigate, the couple promised that they'd keep quiet and the guard left.
Police suspect that the Garcias were looking to rob White before killing him.
LAPD detectives are working with police in York, Pa., to determine whether the Garcias are responsible for a "similar crime in which the victim was not killed," Arciniega said. He added that the Garcias have criminal records in York for robbery and drug charges.
White was a handyman who answered his phone by adding the phrase "entrepreneur extraordinaire" to his name. He graduated from University High School and was an avid UCLA fan. He took numerous classes through the university's extension program, family members said.
He frequented Alcoholics Anonymous meetings near skid row and was inclined to help people he encountered on the street, said his younger brother, David White.
"He would accept you first, then run your resume later," he said. "He was looking forward to being the sober driver for the holidays, and I believe that's what cost him his life."
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-dismemberment-slaying-20101209,0,921058.story
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EDITOR'S NOTE: Here's an UPDATE:
Couple held in dismemberment of man at L.A. hotel
December 10, 2010
A couple wanted for allegedly killing and dismembering a man at a downtown Los Angeles hotel were arrested Friday, authorities said.
The arrests of Edward Garcia Jr., 36, and his wife, Melissa Hope Garcia, 25, were made by the U.S. marshal's service and the Los Angeles Police Department at a location on La Brea Avenue near Hawthorn Avenue in Hollywood.
A maid at the Continental Hotel discovered Herbert Tracy White's severed limbs stuffed in a backpack on the morning of Nov. 29. The rest of his body was found wrapped in a blanket under a bed in the hotel room.
The suspects, a Pennsylvania couple who had rented the $40-a-night room, are believed to have tortured White, 49, before killing him.
No more details about their arrests were immediately available. But sources said Melissa Hope Garcia had dyed her hair in an effort to change her appearance.
Sources said the couple were arrested at a flop house frequented by heroin and crack users.
Meanwhile, White's familiy said they were relieved that the suspected killers were arrested so quickly.
"I am just so thankful that they've been caught this quickly. I knew they would be," said Elizabeth Peterson, White's mother.
The family said a public memorial service for White is scheduled at 2 p.m. Dec. 13 at Inglewood Cemetery-Mortuary.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/12/couple-wanted-for-killing-dismembering-man-at-la-hotel-arrested.html#more
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