0
0
A renowned scientist who contributed to the discovery of water on a distant planet was mysteriously shot and killed on the front porch of his desert California home.
Carl Grillmair, 67, was identified as the victim of a fatal shooting in Llano, a rural community in northern Los Angeles County, on Monday morning.
The astrophysicist was found with a gunshot wound on his front porch after detectives from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau responded to reports of an assault with a deadly weapon just after 6 a.m.
Emergency responders attempted life-saving measures, but he was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the Sheriff’s Department.
While investigating the shooting, deputies from the Palmdale Sheriff’s Station responded to a carjacking in the same area and arrested 29-year-old Freddy Snyder, who was later named a person of interest in Grillmair’s killing.
Snyder was arrested on suspicion of murder, carjacking and burglary on Wednesday. He remains in custody on $2 million bail.
Authorities have not disclosed a possible motive in the case. It remains unclear whether the two men knew each other or if the shooting was targeted.
The Sheriff’s Department has not released Snyder’s booking photo or additional details about the investigation.
Grillmair dedicated more than 40 years to advancing science. He was an accomplished astrophysicist at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), where he worked with the university’s Infrared Processing and Analysis Center, which partners with NASA.
Colleagues described Grillmair’s research as “ingenious,” noting that the discovery of water is considered a key indicator that a planet may have conditions suitable for life.
Caltech confirmed in a statement to Los Angeles news station KTLA that Grillmair was the victim of the shooting.
Grillmair’s friend and colleague at Caltech, astronomer Sergio Fajardo-Acosta, told the Los Angeles Times that he was “very famous in astronomy and a very renowned scientist.”
“His legacy will live on forever,” Fajardo-Acosta added.
