Man brings body to Mt. Shasta police and says he killed family

A man who showed up at a Northern California police station with a body in his car and confessed to killing that person and three other family members found inside his apartment has been identified, police said Tuesday.

Shankar Nagaappa Hangud, 53, was arrested Monday after he turned himself in to Mt. Shasta police and told investigators that he had killed the man in his car, Roseville Police Capt. Josh Simon said.

Police said he also confessed to killing three other people at his apartment in Roseville, about 212 miles south of Mt. Shasta. Hangud is facing four murder charges, Simon said. He is in custody in Placer County.

Officers found the bodies of an adult and two juveniles Monday at Hangud’s Roseville apartment after Mt. Shasta police told them of Hangud’s statement, Simon said.

Hangud left his home in Roseville last week with the relative found in his car, and they traveled to numerous places in Northern California and ended up in Mt. Shasta, Simon said. It appeared the victims were killed over a few days, though detectives were still trying to piece together when they died, Simon said.

“We’re still working to put that timeline together,” he said. ”We can confirm the victim he had in his vehicle in Mt. Shasta was an adult male of East Indian descent.”

Simon asked members of the public to contact the Roseville Police Department if they recently saw Hangud’s red Mazda 6 sedan or if they know the family.

Officials were working to identify the victims. An autopsy will determine how they died, Simon said. He declined to say if the juveniles were children or teenagers or give any details on how they died.

Detectives have interviewed Hangud, but they have not determined a motive, he said.

Tax records showed that Hangud faced an IRS tax lien of $178,00. His only prior interaction with law enforcement in Placer County was for speeding in 2016, the Sacramento Bee reported. Hangud’s LinkedIn profile shows he is a data specialist and had worked for several companies in Sacramento and the Bay Area.