LOS ANGELES, CA — Authorities are investigating the homeless encampment deaths of a man and a woman in the Westlake District. The woman’s daughter found her mother inside a locked tent where she had been mauled by dogs on Monday night, KTLA reported.
The young woman reportedly had to cut into the tent to find her mother and could be seen collapsed in the street wailing following the grisly discovery, cell phone footage shot by neighbors in a nearby apartment building showed.
Police were called to the scene in the 1200 block of Huntley Drive at about 7:20 p.m. for an unknown disturbance, Los Angeles Police Department Officer Tony Im said. They located inside the tent the body of a woman later identified by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner as 46-year-old Lucrecia Macias Barajas. She had been partially eaten by two dogs locked in the tent with her, according to authorities.
It wasn’t immediately known how or when she died. Her tent was located under a tarp blocking the sidewalk near the 110 Freeway and a high school.
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Neither death is currently being investigated as a homicide, said Im. The county medical examiner will determine their causes of death.
A distraught German Shepherd and another dog were seen being taken into the custody of Los Angeles County Animal Control Services. Their fate wasn’t known as of Wednesday.
Another person living in the encampment was found dead inside a burned out RV, neighbors told KTLA. They showed reporters electrical wires connected to an open electric box among a string a safety issues connected to the encampment that has plagued the community for months.
“This place has been a danger zone,” the man told KTLA. “People don’t feel safe, and nothing is ever done to clear it for good.”
The Council District 1’s City Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez’s deputy director of communications issued a statement to Spectrum News.
“This is a horrific and unacceptable tragedy and our hearts are with the victims and their loved ones. Our office is working closely with City departments and community partners to respond to this incident and ensure impacted communities have the resources they need. Councilmember Hernandez remains committed to ending the homelessness crisis in Los Angeles by working urgently to bring people indoors to access lifesaving care and services.”
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