Woman’s Body Is Found Along With Toddler in Motel
ANAHEIM — A badly decomposed body was discovered in a motel room Wednesday along with a toddler who appears to be the dead woman’s child.
“The child is in good health,†said Anaheim Sgt. Joe Vargas. The boy, 2 to 3 years old, was with the woman and a man when they checked in a week ago, witnesses said.
A maintenance man made the discovery shortly before 5 p.m. after noticing a smell from the room at the Arena Inn on Katella Avenue near Haster Street, a few blocks from Disneyland.
The woman was seated on the floor with what appeared to be blood on her head, said a witness. Another said the child was cowering in the corner when a neighbor entered the room.
“I ran in there, grabbed the kid and ran him out,†said Earle Baskin, who got there ahead of the police. “The scene was horrendous.â€
Witnesses said that when the boy was carried from the room he kept saying, “I couldn’t wake up my mother.â€
Police placed the boy in protective custody at Orangewood Children’s Home.
“We believe we know who was registered to the room,†Vargas said, “but we can’t be positive and don’t want to speculate. At this point we don’t know whether we have a homicide, overdose or death by natural causes.â€
He also could not say how long the woman had been dead.
A desk clerk at the motel also declined to identify the woman, but said that she had checked in with a man and the toddler July 1, paying $161 in cash for a week’s rent. The couple, he said, had arrived in a car and appeared to be local.
Neighbors said the man was driving a 1998 gold Chevy truck and that he left Sunday.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
