On Monday, we reported that a suspect in the murder of David O’Connell, Auxiliary Bishop of the Arch Diocese of Los Angeles, had been taken into custody. O’Connell, 69, was found shot to death in his home on Saturday afternoon.
Officials have now identified the man arrested in connection with O’Connell’s slaying as 61-year-old Carlos Medina, whose wife was the bishop’s housekeeper. Per CNN:
Medina, whose wife is the bishop’s housekeeper, was taken into custody at his Los Angeles-area home in Torrance, California, after an hourslong standoff with police.
Medina, 61, has not been charged with a crime as of Monday, and authorities have not said what preliminary charges he’s currently being held on. CNN is trying to determine whether Medina has an attorney.
The tipster who led police to Medina relayed to investigators that Medina had beenacting strangely and made comments about the bishop owing him money, according to Luna, who also noted he was not certain of any dispute between the two.
“It’s something that we’ve heard to this point, and that is something that the detectives will go out and validate and see if it’s true or not,” Luna said, referring to the alleged dispute over money.
“Our investigation continues, which means interviewing multiple witnesses to find out and get a better picture of what happened here.”
Though a motive has not yet been determined, two firearms were recovered from Medina’s home and are being examined by the crime lab, along with other evidence.
According to Monday’s press conference, police found no signs of forced entry at O’Connell’s home when they responded to the scene. Though neither Medina nor his wife was working at the home on Saturday, a dark SUV similar to the one Medina drives was picked up on surveillance video pulling into O’Connell’s driveway and leaving shortly thereafter.
As noted in our prior coverage, O’Connell was a beloved figure in the community. Sheriff Luna noted as much in his tweets on Sunday regarding the matter.
Our thoughts and prayers go to his family and friends. I have also offered our support to Archbishop Gomez and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
The @LASDHQ is committed to arresting those responsible for this horrible crime.
— Robert Luna (@LACoSheriff) February 19, 2023
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