Homicide Report > Amelia Espinoza, 42 [Updated]
Amelia Espinoza, 42 [Updated]
Died Feb. 4, 2011
Amelia Espinoza, a 42-year-old Latina, was found dead Friday, Feb. 4, in the 5600 block of Maywood Avenue in Maywood, according to family and Los Angeles County coroner's records.
[For the record, Feb. 9, 12:27 p.m.: An earlier version of this post, based on information from the coroner's office, listed the victim as Jane Doe No. 6. Family of the woman told KTLA News her name was Amelia Espinoza. Coroner's officials have not released the victim's name citing that they have not notified next of kin of her death.]
Moises Meraz-Espinoza, an 18-year-old Latino and Amelia Espinoza's son, apparently walked into a Huntington Park police station Friday afternoon and told authorities that he had killed someone and that the body was inside an apartment in Maywood.
Family members told KTLA-TV that Meraz-Espinoza admitted cutting his mother's body with a saw. They said he seemed depressed after his girlfriend was hit by a car and killed four months ago.
Homicide investigators at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, which is handling the case, confirmed that the body parts were found in a freezer but declined to provide further details, saying the investigation was ongoing.
[Updated Feb. 9, 12:27 p.m.: On Tuesday, Meraz-Espinoza was charged with one count of murder. He did not enter a plea in court. He is currently being held in lieu of $1 million at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility. His next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 23 at the East Los Angeles Municipal Court. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison.]
— Ching-Ching Ni and Sarah Ardalani
KTLA Video: Teen charged with killing mom
Photo: Moises Meraz-Espinoza. Credit: Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
- Neighborhood: Maywood
- Age: 42
- Gender: Female
- Cause: Strangled
- Day of the week: Friday
- Agency: LASD Homicide
- Race/Ethnicity: Latino
- Circumstance: Domestic violence
- Crime scene: Residence
12 reader comments about Amelia Espinoza
Saw this on the news. Pretty sick to saw your own mother in pieces and stuff her in the freezer.
Feb. 8, 2011 at 8:42 a.m.
I wonder if his mind had snapped because of the death of his girlfriend?? He may have wanted to die too. I hope he gets the help he needs, the tools to deal with the loss of his girlfriend so he can deal with the murder of his Mother -the death he caused. God Bless this young man and his family.
Feb. 8, 2011 at 11:48 a.m.
Who knows what made him snap. But someone must have seen the anger from his loss and his torment. Maybe he felt or is responsible in some way. Good possibility he was under the influence of something. Nobody just goes to thier Mother's house to do this. Probably halucinating (sp)It's a little late to help this guy. His life is over too. He'll probably end up in a State Mental Hospital for an undetermined sentence on our ticket.
Feb. 9, 2011 at 12:57 a.m.
Its sad to see this troubled young man do such a TRAGIC "SICKENING" crime to his own MOTHER. I feel so bad for his mother. I wonder if she had any fear towards him before this incident. Were there any signs of " psychotic thoughts or actions" that he had prior. The sad thing is, is that we will never know how his mother felt or if she feared her own life every night before she went to sleep, while he was there? Maybe she was in denial that her son had mental problems and just kept ignoring his actions due to the fact that he is her son and she loves him. Unfortunately it is too late to find out any information on what type of relationship she had with her son. I don't believe that people just wake up one morning and decide to murder their own mother. I guarantee that if her son could have been evaluated by a Psychiatric Doctor during the beginning of his depression (4 months prior), then maybe Amelia could have still been here today.
Feb. 10, 2011 at 4:28 p.m.
i had him for my night school class a last year, he didnt seem like a guy who would do something like that.
Feb. 10, 2011 at 8:08 p.m.
Danella,
How can you guarantee that if he was seen by a doctor that he would have recieved the treatment he needed? There is no way that you can make that statement and have it hold up at all! Even if this person was seen by a doctor he still had the option of partaking in thearpy or walking away. Taking someone to see a doctor and then making sure that the recommended therapy is followed through are two very different things. No one would have been able to make this person participate in therapy even it if was for his own good.
Feb. 10, 2011 at 10:48 p.m.
dangg poor guyy thee skaryy thingg is thaat iknew his mom. inever got too knoee him. but it felt soo skaryy too knoee this happenedd to her. it waas likee a moviee thingg. myy heart still hurts too thinkk about thee poor mother, but poor hiim too now he is all alonee && he waas supeer depressed r.i.p ameliaa
Feb. 17, 2011 at 8:07 p.m.
— gisell
Do you think it's 'cool' to type like that? Your spelling is horrible. It's also extremely annoying trying to read it. Personally, after I read the first 3 words, I just skipped over your retarded comment.
Feb. 20, 2011 at 11:18 a.m.
Apparently this kids mom used to hang out with gang members back in her day. Father was not around. Rumors around the city are that she was cruel to the boy in front of his friends. When the kid started working she decided she didnt want to work anymore and wanted him to support the home.
Im not justifying what the kid did but its sad to see the circumstances he was brought up in. Some people dont have a chance.
April 3, 2011 at 10:31 p.m.
damm tahh lokko ese wey!!!
i dontt noe whatt typee of person the mom was butt i wouldd never do such thing to the person who gave me life that foo needs seriouse help :(
he shouldd die cause he killed the momma
April 13, 2011 at 1:42 p.m.
He was my friend... and till this day I'll never understand what got into him. He was a really kind and friendly. Im sure he regrets it all. I wish I had the chance to talk to him and fully understand everything...
Sept. 20, 2011 at 1:22 p.m.
i am from maywood. i used to live in maywood ave. my brother and moises went to chester w. nimitz middle school. and they were friends. my brother was really horrified when he found out that moises had murdered his mom. his mom was a sweet women, she would give him everything. poor ms. amelia rest in peace.
Jan. 22, 2012 at 11:52 p.m.
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