82-Year-Old Dies After Shooting; Daughter Charged

A 44-year-old Tustin Ranch woman suspected of shooting her mother over the weekend now faces murder charges after the 82-year-old victim died Tuesday morning.

Helen Ben-Josef, shot twice in the abdomen, died at 9:05 a.m. Tuesday at Western Medical Center-Santa Ana, just hours before her daughter, Emanuela “Liki” Ben-Josef, appeared in a Santa Ana courtroom for arraignment on a murder charge.

Police arrested Emanuela Ben-Josef after she called 911 just before 7 p.m. Saturday to report the shooting, according to Tustin Police Sgt. Brent Zicarelli.

Police found the wounded victim in the bedroom of the townhome she and her daughter shared in the 2700 block of Monza, Zicarelli said. A gun was recovered at the scene, he said.

Zicarelli said detectives have pinpointed a motive for the shooting through extensive interviews with the daughter, but the police spokesman declined to elaborate. On Sunday, investigator Tom Tarpley said the violence may have stemmed from a “disagreement over financial matters.”

Emanuela Ben-Josef did not enter a plea during her brief appearance Tuesday afternoon in Municipal Court in Santa Ana and is scheduled to return Aug. 1.

Police are continuing their investigation into the relationship between the mother and daughter, and ask anyone who knows Emanuela Ben-Josef to call Tarpley at (714) 573-3257.