A Hollywood producer’s son who was jailed for allegedly dismembering his wife and her parents committed suicide in his cell two days before a hearing that would have determined whether his case would go to trial, according to a report.
Sam Haskell Jr., whose father, Sam Haskell, represented numerous stars at the William Morris Talent Agency, killed himself on Saturday, TMZ reported, citing law enforcement sources who did not disclose his manner of death.
The younger Haskell was charged in November 2023 with murdering and dismembering his wife, 37-year-old Mei Haskell, and killing her parents. The bodies of her father, Gaoshan Li, 72, and mother YanXiang Wang, 64, have never been found.
The four adults and the Haskells’ three children all lived together in the Tarzana neighborhood of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley when Mei Haskell and her parents went missing, police said at the time. The children were found safe at school.
It later emerged that, after killing them, Haskell had crammed their bodies into trash bags and hired day laborers to take them away, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney. Haskell told the workers they were hauling rocks, but the four became suspicious when the contents proved to be “squishy,” TMZ reported.
After peeking inside and discovering body parts, they hightailed it back to Haskell’s house, reimbursed him for a job not done, and called 911.
When police got to the home, the bags were nowhere to be found. But later that day Haskell was spotted by witnesses and caught on surveillance video discarding one of the bags into a dumpster at an Encino strip mall five miles away. The next day, a homeless man rummaging for recyclables found a human torso in the same dumpster and called 911. The remains were later identified as those of Mei Haskell.
Police searched Haskell’s home, found evidence “that indicated he dismembered the bodies,” according to Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman, and arrested Haskell. In December 2023 he arrived in court shirtless, which police said was necessary because of his “suicidal ideation.”
Haskell pleaded not guilty to three counts of murder in January 2024 and was being held without bail.
With News Wire Services
