Thursday, August 21, 2025

Missing California woman found dead victim of alleged domestic violence

Friends and neighbors of a missing Lancaster woman who was found dead in the Angeles National Forest over the weekend are calling on the L.A. County DA’s Office to file charges against her husband and have him extradited from South America where he reportedly fled after her disappearance.  

Sheylla Cabrerra, 33, a mother of three, had last been seen alive on Aug 9.  

Deputies with the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department responded to the family’s apartment in the 500 Block of Lancaster Boulevard on Aug. 12 after concerned friends and neighbors reported the 33-year-old missing.  

However, hours before deputies showed up to the apartment, a neighbor returning home from the nightshift at 2:40 a.m. spotted her husband, 36-year-old Jossimar Cabrerra, cleaning out the trunk of the family’s car.  

“It was strange,” neighbor Norbelvi Melara told KTLA. “I work those days, and I know there’s nobody around at that time, and cleaning a trunk? I thought it was scary.”  

The investigation took a turn the following day after detectives viewed surveillance footage from a neighbor’s Ring camera that appeared to show Sheylla’s husband dragging a large item wrapped in some type of material away from their apartment, prompting LASD’s Homicide Bureau to take over the case and identify the 36-year-old a person of interest.  

It was later learned that Jossimar and the couple’s three children were in Peru where the family is from.  

On Aug. 16, a tip from the Montrose Mountains Search and Rescue team led investigators to a remote area in the Angeles National Forest where Sheylla’s remains were found in the material seen in the surveillance footage.  

“That video is consistent with how and what we found [the victim’s] remains in,” LASD Homicide Det. Michael Modica told KTLA.  

  • Sheylla Cabrerra
  • Sheylla Cabrerra
  • Doorbell camera footage shared with KTLA 5 News shows a man in Lancaster, California, dragging a large sack that investigators believe contained the body of his wife. The sack, along with the body of Sheylla Cabrera, was discovered on August 16, 2025, in the Angeles National Forest. (KTLA viewer video)
  • Sheylla Cabrerra
  • Lancaster Woman Killed

Many of those who knew her believe Sheylla suffered years of domestic violence, both physical and verbal abuse, and was preparing to leave her husband when she was killed.  

“She was just too scared because he would always threaten to leave with the kids, so I think that was her fear,” Elizabeth Rousseau, a friend, explained. “If she did anything, he was going to kidnap the kids.” 

Neighbor Laura Marshall said she was shocked to learn of Sheylla’s death.  

“It’s unbelievable because you always see these types of things on the news and you never in a million years think that could happen to my neighbor.”  

As for Jossimar, he was taken into custody in Peru while the couple’s children were put into protective custody. He was later released because formal charges have yet to be filed against him in the case.  

“We need to put pressure on getting him back over here, so we can serve justice for her,” Rousseau told KTLA.  

It’s unclear exactly when the sheriff’s department intends to file charges with the L.A. County DA and begin the extradition process.  

If you or anyone you know is suffering from domestic violence, help can be found by calling the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233.

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