Law enforcement officers have apparently arrested the husband of a woman who worked as a housekeeper for Auxiliary Bishop David G. O’Connell in connection with the merciless slaying of the beloved Los Angeles cleric, reports suggested. Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna identified Carlos Medina as the suspect in the slaying. He did not cite a motive but said a tipster had told authorities Medina was acting strangely after the killing and claimed that the bishop owed him money. He is being held in lieu of $2-million bail.
Luna said detectives connected Medina to the crime from a surveillance video that showed a vehicle at the O’Connell home about the time of the killing, a “dark, compact SUV.” Weapons were found at Medina’s home in Torrance, and Luna said ballistic tests are pending as well. Revelations about the shooting came during an emotional afternoon news conference in which officials and Los Angeles Archbishop José H. Gómez lauded O’Connell for his friendship, his selflessness and his focus on the community he had loved and served for decades.
“He was the help of the helpless and the hope of the hopeless,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn, who described O’Connell as a long time friend. “He knew that serving God meant serving man.” O’Connell, 69, was killed Saturday afternoon in the Catholic archdiocese-owned home in Hacienda Heights where he lived alone. Luna said the bishop was found in his bedroom with “at least one gunshot wound to the upper body.” He said no firearms were recovered at the scene, and there was no sign of forced entry either, pertaining to the fact that the bishop must have welcomed the housekeeper’s husband quite ethically, not knowing the after effects clearly.
Deputies answering a call for a medical emergency shortly before 1 p.m. Saturday found O’Connell. Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene itself. A couple living on the quiet, tree-lined street said they heard no gunshot or other unusual noise before the arrival of firefighters and ambulance crews. When asked about who called 911 to report the incident, Luna said he believed a church deacon had gone to O’Connell’s home to check on him after O’Connell was late for a meeting. The sheriff also was asked whether authorities have spoken to the housekeeper.
“The detectives are absolutely interviewing her,” Luna said. “As far as we know at this time she’s been fully cooperative.” Luna said homicide and major crimes detectives worked around the clock in the 48 hours since the bishop’s killing to find the suspect. “We apprehended him by some amazing detective work,” he said. “Our next priority is to get him prosecuted.” Gómez fought back tears as he spoke about O’Connell, whom he remembered fondly for his fluent Spanish spoken with an Irish accent.
The archbishop called O’Connell “a good friend of Los Angeles” and said that “every day he wanted to show compassion to the poor, to the homeless, to the immigrant and to all those living on society’s margins. He was a good priest, a good bishop and a man of peace.” The archbishop’s voice began to quaver as he talked about what a grave loss his friend’s death is and how grateful he is to Luna and the investigative team “for their hard work in bringing the suspect into custody.”
