A renowned scientist who contributed to the discovery of water on a distant planet was mysteriously shot and killed on the front porch of his desert California home.
Carl Grillmair, 67, was identified as the victim of a fatal shooting in Llano, a rural area of northern Los Angeles, on Monday morning.
Colleagues called Grillmair’s research ‘ingenious’ and said that discovering water ‘is a telltale sign the conditions of the planet are auspicious for life.’
The astrophysicist was found with a gunshot wound on his front porch after detectives from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Homicide responded to reports of an assault with a deadly weapon just after 6am.
Emergency responders attempted life-saving measures, but he was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
While investigating the shooting call, the Palmdale Sheriff’s Station responded to a carjacking in the same area and arrested a man named Freddy Snyder, 29, who was named as a person of interest in Grillmair’s homicide case.
Snyder was arrested for murder, carjacking, and burglary on Wednesday. He is in custody with a $2 million bail.
Law enforcement has not released a motive in the alleged homicide. It’s unclear if the two men knew one another or whether the shooting was targeted.
The LACSD hasn’t released Snyder’s booking photo or any further information on the case.
Hellbound and Down 