Police Determining If Body Found Next To Highway Is Linked To Bloody Scene In Azusa

AZUSA (CBSLA) — Police in the San Gabriel Valley are trying to figure out if a dead body found Wednesday is related to a mysterious, bloody scene they encountered nearby earlier in the week.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Dept. was investigating the area surrounding a body found in the Angeles National Forest near Hwy. 39 in Azusa. The deceased male was found about 30 feet down the side of the road.

"Based on the clothing, it is a male, however, what we don't know at this point is whether it's related to the incident that occurred in Azusa Monday night," Lt. Derrick Alfred with the LASD Homicide Bureau told CBS2 News.

Investigators are calling this a "suspicious circumstances investigation" and are attempting to determine if the body has any connection to a separate investigation at a home in Azusa, where Monday night deputies responded to a disturbance call.

No one was at the home at the corner of Goodway Drive and Duell Street when officers arrived, but they did find a large amount of blood inside the home, a trail of it outside, and an abandoned video game chair on the curb.

Authorities determined then that either a medical emergency or a crime had occurred at the home.

"As of now, we still don't know that this person that we found is actually linked to that situation there," said Alfred. "So, until we can identify the person, determine the manner of death, and determine that it was a homicide or most likely a homicide, we can't call the Azusa incident a homicide yet."

Detectives said all they have at the home so far is a scene that's indicative of an assault, but they don't believe any resident at the home was murdered. Neighbors told CBS2 four college students, whom have all been accounted for, rent the house.

Police said there are people they wish to question.

"In this particular case, if it is related, we have an idea of who it is, and it's not a random event where somebody has just broken into a house and the neighbor needs to be on high alert," Alfred said.

Anyone with information on either incident is urged to call the LASD Homicide Bureau at (213)229-1700.