Arabella De Leon

In the quiet, upscale neighborhood of Granada Hills, nestled in the foothills of the Santa Susana Mountains, Saturday, January 27, 2024, began like any other day on Lerdo Avenue. But as evening approached, the tranquility was shattered by an act of violence that would leave a family decimated and a community in shock. Inside a sprawling home in the 11600 block, a tragedy unfolded that would end the life of 80-year-old Arabella De Leon, a proud mother and the matriarch of her family.

Around 6:50 p.m., a distressing 911 call was made from within the De Leon residence. The call came from a woman who had barricaded herself inside a room, hiding from a horror that was unfolding in her own home. When officers from the Los Angeles Police Department arrived, they received no answer at the door and were forced to make entry. Inside, they were met by the surviving witness, a daughter of the family with special needs, who directed them to the gruesome scene.

In one room of the house, police discovered the bodies of Arabella De Leon and her two adult children, Merceditas De Leon, 49, and Rodrigo De Leon, 53. All three had been shot to death. In a different room, authorities found the body of Arabella’s husband, 79-year-old Rodrigo De Leon. He appeared to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The Los Angeles Police Department quickly determined the incident to be a murder-suicide.

Born in the Philippines in 1943, Arabella De Leon had built a life in the United States, earning a degree in Dietary Nutrition in Missouri before moving to California. She raised her children in Fremont before settling in Granada Hills in the early 1990s, where she built a beautiful home and had a successful career as a real estate agent and later as a General Manager for a private enterprise. A loyal fan of the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers, she was remembered for her sharp wit, fierce strength, and unwavering support for her loved ones. Neighbors and a UPS driver who had known the family for over two decades described them as a quiet and seemingly normal family, making the sudden violence all the more incomprehensible.

The investigation into the deaths of Arabella and her children was swift in determining the sequence of events, but the motive behind the horrific act remains a mystery. The Los Angeles County medical examiner confirmed that Arabella and her two children died from multiple gunshot wounds, their deaths ruled as homicides. Rodrigo De Leon's death was ruled a suicide from a gunshot wound to the chest. LAPD Capt. Kelly Muniz described the scene as "terrifying and horrific," noting that the survival of the one witness was the only positive aspect of the incident.

The case, while legally closed due to the death of the perpetrator, leaves a lingering sense of shock and a host of unanswered questions for the Granada Hills community and the surviving family members. The quiet street, lined with upscale homes, became the scene of a large police presence as investigators from the LAPD's Robbery-Homicide Division tried to piece together what led to the annihilation of a family. Flowers were left outside the home by those who knew the De Leons, a small memorial to a family that had lived in the neighborhood for decades. The investigation has not released any further details, leaving a community to grapple with the unsettling reality that such a tragedy could happen in their midst.