X-Men actor Shawn Ashmore and his wife Dana are paying memorial to their late friend Mei Li Haskell, after the man suspected of murdering her and her parents took his own life.
‘Our hearts are heavy, but we feel some small sense of peace knowing there is finally a bit of closure,’ Ashmore, 45, and his wife, 42, said of following the suicide of suspect Sam Haskell IV, 37.
Authorities said Haskell, the son of a prominent Hollywood executive, had killed Mei Li, 37, her mother Yanxiang Wang, 64, and her stepfather Gaoshan Li, 71, in a Tarzana, California home on November 6, 2023.
Ashmore and his spouse continued: ‘We are mourning the loss of an extraordinary mother, someone who poured her entire heart into her three boys and never stopped putting them first.’
The Canadian actor and his spouse issued a public statement after officials with the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office confirmed Haskell’s death in custody via suicide.
The duo had not been permitted to open up about the case publicly due to ongoing litigation in the matter, TMZ reported Tuesday, as they had worked with officials on behalf of their late friend Mei Li.
Actor Shawn Ashmore and his wife Dana are paying memorial to their late friend Mei Li Haskell, after the man suspected of murdering her and her parents took his own life
Her accused murderer, Samuel Bond Haskell IV, died in jail in LA days ago. Pictured in 2024
The couple told the outlet they initially crossed paths with Mei Li around 2022, as their kids went to the same Los Angeles area school.
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They described her as ‘an incredible mother’ who was ‘always present, always loving, and constantly giving.
Shawn and Dana Ashmore told TMZ that Mei Li’s hobbies included pickleball and collecting Pokémon cards.
Said Dana: ‘She was so generous, so kind, so loving. She’s someone that never deserved this.’
Mei Li ‘was more than a friend,’ the couple said, adding that ‘she went above and beyond for everyone who had the gift of knowing her.
‘Her love, her laughter, her warmth – she’s deeply missed, and always will be.’
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said in a news release Monday that officials found Haskell’s lifeless body in his assigned cell at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility early Saturday.
Authorities have not yet announced a specific cause of death for Haskell.
Shawn and Dana Ashmore told TMZ that Mei Li’s hobbies included pickleball and collecting Pokémon cards
Mei Li ‘was more than a friend,’ the Ashmores said, adding that ‘she went above and beyond for everyone who had the gift of knowing her’
Ashmore pictured in 2006’s X-Men: The Last Stand, in which he played Bobby Drake/ Iceman
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said the suspect’s death via his own hand subverted essential elements of the legal system intended to provide survivors with some sense of closure.
‘Instead of standing before a judge and answering for the crimes he’s been charged with, the defendant managed to escape justice,’ Hochman said.
He added of Haskell’s death: ‘This is one last cruel act by someone who did the most horrific things for reasons we will never entirely know.’
Insiders said that Haskell penned a suicide note in which he called his three kids his best friends.
Hochman told TMZ that Haskell, ahead of being arrested, bought a one-way ticket for himself and a girlfriend.
Haskell’s lifeless body was found in his assigned cell at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility early Saturday in LA, officials said
Authorities have not yet announced a specific cause of death for Haskell
Hochman said that Haskell’s suicide prior to facing justice deprived the relatives of his victims potentially cathartic experiences in letting him know how much damage he caused.
‘A family that has been dealing with unimaginable loss now has been robbed of their chance to face him, hold him accountable for his barbaric actions and openly share their grief and their cherished memories of their loved ones,’ Hochman said.
The remains of Mei Li’s parents were never recovered, investigators said.