Couple Arrested: Dismemberment Murder Charges To Follow

By: Jennifer Hong
Staff Writer
Published: Dec 13, 2021

Couple Arrested Dismemberment

Couple Arrested: Dismemberment murder charges to follow. The couple was arrested on dismemberment charges stemming from a Thanksgiving killing. Herbert Tracy White was murdered and pieces of the body were found by authorities.

According to police Edward Garcia Jr., 36, and Melissa Hope Garcia, 25, cut White into pieces and stashed him in a backpack and under a bed in a downtown hotel room. A 3.5-inch hunting knife with blood on it was found by authorities in the hotel room it is believed to be the murder weapon. They have been charged with murder and the special circumstances of torture.

White's body was found by a maid of the Continental Hotel in the downtown Skid Row, officially known as Central City East an area of Downtown Los Angeles. (SEEDY) The couple already had several previous arrests for robbery Pa. The police believe that the Garcias were trying to rob the victim, who had befriended them and gave them money.

"They were asleep when we kicked the door in," stated Matt Brown, a supervisor with the U.S. Marshals Service. "They were coherent but they looked like they were on the downside of a drug binge."

Authorities learned about the couple's whereabouts through the public's tips and information from their hometown. Several homeless people were staying in the same abandoned building where they were found. According to the victim's family, he was a giving man willing to help others down on their luck. The Garcias will be arraigned Dec. 13 in court.