Man Stopped on Traffic Charges Held in Slaying
A man detained Friday afternoon because police believed he was involved in a burglary was arrested on suspicion of murder after officers discovered the credit cards he carried belonged to a Reseda man later found dead in his home, police said.
Richard McDonald Hart, 33, was stopped by patrol officers about 1 p.m. Friday in the 9400 block of Sepulveda Boulevard in Sepulveda. Hart was stopped because a check of his auto license plate revealed several outstanding warrants, said Lt. Richard Blankenship of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Officers found credit cards and personal property in the car that led them to believe Hart had been involved in a burglary, said Los Angeles Police Lt. Don Kitchen. Hart was detained for questioning.
But when officers went to the burglarized residence in the 7300 block of Yarmouth Avenue, they found the body of the 68-year-old resident. Blankenship said the man appeared to have been strangled and beaten earlier that morning.
The man’s name was not released Saturday because relatives had not been notified.
Hart is being held in the West Valley station jail.
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