Victim May Have Offered Killer a Ride, Police Say
Detectives investigating the slaying of a 66-year-old Arroyo Grande man, whose stabbed body was found in Agoura, said Friday that they believe he may have been the victim of a hitchhiker’s attack.
“That’s the only theory we have at this time,” said Detective John Ferdolage of the Arroyo Grande Police Department.
The body of Russell Chamberlin was positively identified by Los Angeles County coroners this week, and Arroyo Grande police are assisting the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department in the homicide investigation.
Eight years ago, Chamberlin picked up two hitchhikers who beat him up in the Mojave Desert, Ferdolage said. Chamberlin was believed to avoid picking up hitchhikers because of that attack, but his family and friends speculated that his friendly, helpful nature may have prompted him to pick up his assailant, Ferdolage said.
“Maybe he stopped along the highway to help someone,” Ferdolage said.
Chamberlin was a retired Nevada health investigator who was held in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp for nearly four years during World War II.
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