Los Angeles: Detectives from the Cold Case
Homicide Special Section of Robbery-Homicide Division announced the
linking of Larry D. Hubbard in one, or possibly two unsolved Los Angeles
murders in 1980 and two unsolved murders in 2000 one in the city of
Pomona and one in Riverside County.
LAPD detectives have been
investigating the 1980 cases involving 25 year-old Sonia Smith, murdered
on August 19, 1980, and a possible linked case of another 25 year-old
female murdered on November 4, 1980. The women were found in abandoned
fields with their wrists and ankles tied. The Los Angeles County
Coroner ascribed their deaths to ligature strangulation. In the case of
Sonia Smith, a partial DNA profile was developed from a sexual assault
kit, however, insufficient to enter into the CoDIS database.
On
August 11, 2000, Pomona Police Department investigated the murder of a
female named Vanessa Williams found strangled to death in a vacant
field. On October 14, 2000, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department
investigated the murder of a female named Christine Fields found
strangled to death in a field. The women were from the city of Pomona
and had similar backgrounds. Detectives from both agencies worked the
clues. On July 7, 2007, LAPD received notification linking the Smith
murder with the Pomona and Riverside County cases based on DNA
evidence.
While reviewing the Smith case, detectives
discovered information in the murder of a female named Phyllis
McClinton. The murder case bore similarities to the Smith case in both
the victim’s background and the manner she was found. A person of
interest was developed in the McClinton murder based on a November 1980
case where a female victim was assaulted and bound in a similar manner
as in the Smith and McClinton case. The victim survived the attack and
identified a person named Larry Hubbard as the attacker. Hubbard, who
at the time was a resident of Los Angeles, was eventually arrested and
charged with False Imprisonment.
Approximately 27 years later,
on May 22, 2007, Larry Hubbard, who was also known by the name Larry
Barnes, was arrested by the Ontario Police Department for an outstanding
Florida escape warrant, stemming from a 1974 robbery conviction.
Hubbard had escaped the Florida prison in 1977 and moved to California.
Hubbard was a resident of Pomona, however was located and arrested at
his job in the city of San Bernardino without incident. On June 21,
2007 Hubbard was extradited to Florida and on June 23, 2007, Hubbard
attempted suicide. He died of complications on January 13, 2008.
In
September 2011 detectives requested and used a biological sample from
Hubbard, which was compared to evidence from the Smith case. On June
22, 2012 detectives were notified that Hubbard’s DNA profile matched the
DNA in the Smith case.
Hubbard may be responsible for more
murders over the 3 decades that have gone undetected and detectives are
asking anyone with further information to please contact Detectives Luis
Rivera and Elizabeth Estupinian, Robbery-Homicide Division, Cold Case
Special Section at (213) 486-6810. During non-business hours or on
weekends, calls should be directed to 1-(877-527-3249). Anyone wishing
to remain anonymous should call Crimestoppers at 1--222-TIPS
(800-222-8477). Tipsters may also contact Crimestoppers by texting to
phone number 274637 (C-R-I-M-E-S on most keypads) with a cell phone.
All text messages should begin with the letters “LAPD.” Tipsters may
also go to LAPDOnline.org, click on "webtips" and follow the prompts.
