Homicide detectives are seeking information in the death of Suzane Guillaum, 44, whose body was discovered June 15 under an overpass near Camp Plenty Road.
Lt. Derrick Alfred of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau said detectives were still waiting for the official determination on the cause of death from the Coroner’s Office, and would not discuss whether there were any signs of foul play, instead preferring to refer to the investigation at this point as a suspicious death, as opposed to declaring it a suspected murder.
“(The death) may be natural, but we’re just waiting on the Coroner’s Office,” Alfred said, explaining the conditions of how and when the body was found made it much more difficult to determine the cause of death. “There was some (evidence) that we’re just not going to be able to comment on at this stage of the investigation.”
Officials responding to the scene found her body at approximately 5 p.m. and immediately established a crime scene.
However, due to the 107-degree temperature that day and the state of decomposition, detectives are still working to pinpoint when Guillaum died.
“It was in the advanced stages of decomposition,” Alfred noted, adding, “We don’t know if that’s because of the time, but it may have been accelerated because of the heat.” The week the body was found, temperatures were reported to peak in the triple digits for several days, according to National Weather Service records.
Guillaum did not have a registered address at the time of her death, and detectives are still looking into whether she died at the location where she was found, or whether her body might have placed where it was found, near the supports for the bridge on Camp Plenty Road and Soledad Canyon Road in Canyon Country.
“We’re still classifying it as suspicious in nature,” he said, “until we’re able to determine otherwise.”
Anyone who recognizes Guiilaum and has any information regarding her death is asked to contact the Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. If you would like to submit a tip anonymously, you can call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or download the LA Crime Stoppers app.
