A man was facing murder charges for allegedly stabbing a 32-year-old mother of three in Van Nuys after she broke up with him four days earlier.
Klaudia Y. Alas, of Van Nuys was found dead in the passenger seat of a parked pickup truck about 7:50 a.m. Tuesday in an alley near Kester Avenue and Lemay Street, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
Her ex-boyfriend, Osmar Gomez, 41, of Los Angeles, called authorities and said the couple had been attacked and he had lost consciousness from a stab wound.
Gomez was found next to the truck, then taken to a hospital for treatment of a non-life-threatening stab wound before being arrested later in the day on suspicion of murder, according to the LAPD.
Capt. Lillian Carranza of the LAPD’s Van Nuys Station told City News Service the man called authorities about 7:50 a.m. Tuesday and reported that he had been assaulted by three other men about 4 a.m., and had lost consciousness, but had just awakened.
When police arrived, Gomez directed them to Alas, who was slumped in the front seat of his vehicle, Carranza said.
Firefighters pronounced her dead at the scene.
A weapon possibly used in the killing was found at the scene, Carranza said.
While police investigated, the woman’s cellphone began ringing as her family tried in vain to get in contact with her, Carranza said.
Gomez has a prior conviction for domestic violence and another for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, CNS has learned.
At a news conference at the Van Nuys Station Friday, Alas’ father said his daughter’s death leaves a void in the family.
“We see it all the time in the news and now we are here with the pain to see my granddaughters without mom,” Sergio Acajabon said.
Alas is survived by a 4-year-old son and two daughters, one 12 and the other 14, Carranza said.
At the news conference, the older daughter read a letter she wrote to her mother, expressing how much she loves and misses her.
Gomez was being held in lieu of $1 million at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in downtown Los Angeles with a court appearance scheduled for Friday according to sheriff’s online inmate records.
Gomez and Alas had a dating relationship for about eight months, but she broke up with him last Friday, Carranza said.
Carranza acknowledged the difficulty faced by women trying to get out of abusive and violent relationships, but said there are resources available, such as the always-available National Domestic Violence hotline at (800) 799- 7233 and, in Van Nuys, the Valley Crisis and Recovery Services Family Justice Center at (818) 886-0453, which will help with relocation, counseling for all affected, employment training, therapy and legal aid.
Noting that domestic violence is the number one cause of injury to women, Carranza also urged anyone who hears people arguing or fighting to call the police.
Carranza hearkened to the Jan. 31 domestic violence killing of a 33-year- old transgender woman in Van Nuys, saying that the victim and 25-year-old suspect had been heard arguing through the night, but no one called authorities until the man allegedly set the apartment on fire after the fatal stabbing.
“Everybody heard them arguing from 2 to 5 (a.m.) but nobody bothered to call,” Carranza said. “She was breaking up with him. One radio call might have saved her. Everybody needs to be involved. Everybody needs to accept responsibility.”
—City News Service