A story for every victim

Gloria Bertina Villalta, 58

Gloria Bertina Villalta, a 58-year-old Latina, was found dead Saturday, Oct. 15, in the 11000 block of Norwalk Boulevard in Norwalk, according to Los Angeles County coroner's records.

[Editor's note: An earlier version of this post, based on information from the coroner's office, gave the victim's name only as Jane Doe #65.]

A jogger notified authorities after noticing a foul smell coming from a patch of ground near an abandoned home Saturday morning, KTLA reported.

Investigators found Villalta's partially burned body in a shallow grave. They believe the body had been left there a few days earlier.

Five days after the discovery, a 15-year-old girl and a 16-year-old boy were arrested in connection with the death. The pair are also believed to be connected to the death of a man discovered in Long Beach.

The victims may be a couple related to the girl, authorities said. They were reported missing from their home in Compton on Tuesday "under suspicious circumstances," said Lt. Mary Leef of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

Family members of the missing couple pointed investigators to the teenagers.

The suspects gave detectives information about the location of one of the missing people, leading authorities to a vacant lot on Atlantic Avenue and Artesia Boulevard in Long Beach.

Coroner's officials recovered a man's body from a shallow grave at the site.

The suspects also gave detectives information that linked them to Villalta's body, Leef said.

The names of the suspects were withheld because of their ages.

The cause Villalta's death hasn't been released, said Ed Winter, spokesman for the coroner's office.

Anyone with information about the deaths is asked to contact the sheriff's homicide bureau at (323) 890-5500. Those wishing to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-TIPS (800) 222-8477.

-- Abby Sewell

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