Kirstie Alley, Sam Haskell III and Mary Haskell arrives to the Premiere of Showtime’s comedy series “Fat Actress” held at the Cinerama Dome in Los Angeles on Wednesday Feb. 23, 2005 (AP Photo/Chris Polk). The Haskell’s son, Samuel Haskell IV, was arrested for murder in connection with the death of a woman whose partial remains were found in a dumpster.
A woman’s headless torso was found hidden in a black plastic bag in a Los Angeles area dumpster and the man arrested in connection with her murder is the son of a longtime Hollywood power couple.
Samuel Haskell, IV, 35, stands accused of one count of murder, according to the LAPD. The identity of the woman whose remains were discovered on Wednesday has not been revealed.
In a press release, police identified the dumpster in question as being located in the Encino neighborhood – at the corner of Ventura Boulevard and Rubio Avenue, a busy commercial strip in the San Fernando Valley along the eastern-western route. The next day, the investigation into the dismembered woman’s death was traced back to a residence on Coldstream Terrace in the entirely different Valley neighborhood of Tarzana – some six miles away, the LAPD says.
“The residence was forensically processed for evidence,” the press release reads. “Additionally, detectives discovered that the location was the family residence where the suspect lived with his wife, in-laws and three children. The children have been located and are been cared for by family members. However, Haskell’s wife and in-laws have not been located.”
Haskell IV is currently in jail on $2 million bail, police said. His case is not currently docketed in Los Angeles County, according to a review of court records. Law enforcement are currently searching for and have requested the public’s help in locating the defendant’s wife, Mei Li Haskell, 37, and her parents, Gaoshan Li, 71, and Yanxiang Wang, 64.
The defendant’s own parents are both known quantities in nearby Tinseltown and the broader entertainment industry.
The suspect’s father, Sam Haskell, III, is the former executive vice president and worldwide head of television for the storied William Morris Endeavor Agency, the oldest talent agency still running. He moved on from that company in 2005 and is currently the head of Magnolia Hill Productions, which has produced several Dolly Parton specials and a Netflix series. Mary Donnelly Haskell was crowned Miss Mississippi in 1977 and she went on to appear in several TV programs, including “7th Heaven” and “Days of Our Lives,” as well as many Christmas-themed movies.
The elder Sam Haskell has been nominated for four Emmy awards. He won in 2021 for outstanding Television movie for “Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square.”
In a relatively minor controversy, he resigned as CEO of the Miss America Organization in December 2017 over a scandal wherein pageant officials allegedly made unfavorable remarks about past contestants’ appearances, sex lives, and intellect, according to Jackson, Mississippi-based ABC affiliate WAPT.
Police in the City of Angels later released additional details about what led them back to the younger Haskell’s residence. The night before the grim find, construction workers reported what appeared to be a body in a black bag, or bags, near the residence. When officers arrived, however, the bags were gone.
“When the officers responded, nothing was located,” LAPD Detective Efren Gutierrez told local NBC affiliate KNBC about the initial reports by the workers. “There was no evidence that allowed the officers to make entry into the home. The bags that were described were no longer outside.”
The discovery of the bag with the woman’s torso inside – which was made by an unhoused man who was looking for recyclables at around 6:00 a.m. – was allegedly consistent with the previously-described bags, police say. That development allowed police to obtain a warrant and raid the Haskells’ million-plus-dollar home.
“Here in the house, once officers made entry, what was discovered was evidence of a crime, including some blood evidence and other items that I’m not going to provide at this point,” Gutierrez told Los Angeles ABC station KABC.
The defendant was arrested at around 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday in the much farther-flung San Fernando Valley neighborhood of Canoga Park – at the frequently-filmed Westfield Topanga mall.
In December 2008, the Hollywood son was charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon. He then took a plea deal on a battery charge, pleaded no contest, and received probation.
In comments to the Los Angeles Times, LAPD Capt. Scot Williams said the remains are presumed to belong to the defendant’s wife.
The defendant and his presumed-dead wife had three sons. The children were picked up from school on Wednesday and are currently in the custody of the Department of Children and Family Services.
Detectives are currently looking for two missing vehicles – a white Volkswagen Tiguan with license plate number 9ANC890, and a white 2014 Nissan Pathfinder with license plate number 7FRM190.
Wang is described as 5’4″ tall and weighing about 135 pounds. Li is described as 5’6″ tall and weighing about 140 pounds.
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