Sketch Released Of Man Wanted In Murder Of Elderly La Verne Couple
LA VERNE (CBSLA.com) — Homicide detectives Wednesday released the sketch of a man wanted in connection with the double-murder of an elderly couple last month.
The composite sketch depicted the man suspected of slaying Shirley Isom and her husband Armie "Troy" Isom on the afternoon of Dec. 26 in their hilltop estate in the 300 block of Roughrider Road in the La Verne-area, according to KNX 1070's Claudia Peschiutta.
Both were found at the front entrance of their massive estate, which sits on a property that spans more than 70 acres. They had been beaten and stabbed and sustained blunt-force trauma.
Shirley, 74, was pronounced dead at the scene. Her 89-year-old husband was taken to a local hospital in critical condition and later died.
Police described the suspect as a white or Hispanic male in his 30s. They said he was seen walking in the area around the time the crime was discovered, wearing a hooded jacket and a backpack.
"Investigators have been able to establish the suspect's route of travel through video and eyewitness accounts," Lt. Dave Coleman of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said. "We've also confirmed his sighting at the Isoms' gate in and around the time of, what we believe, the time of the murders."
Detectives have interviewed family members and many area residents in an effort to determine a possible motive; however, one has yet to be released.
"I saw somebody who looked generally kind of like that but I didn't know anything had happened," Don Minner, a neighbor, told KCAL9's Dave Lopez.
Minner and his wife live next door to the Isoms and said they conversed with them often.
"That day, for some reason, the gate was left open and he didn't normally do that," Minner said of Armie Isom.
Minner said a few days before the couple was killed, Isom had expressed concern about his safety over a break-in that happened in one of the homes on his property and about some lawsuits.
"I asked him. I said, 'Are you keeping your doors locked?' And he said, 'I keep my doors locked all the time,'" Joanne Minner, another neighbor, said.
But detectives say the doors weren't locked the day after Christmas when the crime occurred as there was no sign of a break-in.
As confirmed by detectives, neighbors said Armie Isom was involved in a number of business dealings; subdividing property on the lot in La Verne; commercial businesses; and gold mines.
He was also involved in a massive lawsuit said to be worth $20 million.
Court records show that a previous lawsuit filed by the Isoms' one-time son-in-law was dismissed. Detectives said they are looking into other lawsuits.
Anyone with information was asked to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department at (323) 890-5500.
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