Woodland Hills Man Sought in Bludgeoning Death of Wife

A 54-year-old man who told a business associate he had killed his wife was being sought by police Thursday after the woman’s bludgeoned body was discovered in the couple’s Woodland Hills garage, Los Angeles police said Thursday.

The body of Manijeh Hanoukai, 45, was found stuffed in a plastic bag when police served a search warrant Wednesday evening at the home at 22751 Margarita Drive, Detective Rick Swanston said. An autopsy is pending.

A business associate of Moosa Hanoukai, the woman’s husband, told Huntington Park police that Hanoukai had told him that he had killed his wife, Swanston said. Police in Huntington Park notified Los Angeles police, who had received a report from the couple’s daughter on March 20 that her parents were missing.

Swanston said it appeared that Manijeh Hanoukai had been killed sometime between Friday and Saturday of last week.

The Hanoukais, who had been married for 24 years, were joint owners of Manijeh Fashions, a Huntington Park-based clothing manufacturing company, Swanston said. Though no motive for the killing had been determined Thursday, the couple had been having marital problems, police said. No murder weapon was recovered from the home, police said.

Police continued to search on Thursday for Hanoukai, who is believed to still be in the Los Angeles area. Anybody with information regarding Hanoukai has been asked to call detectives at 818-989-8546.