Woman Found Stabbed to Death in Upscale Beach Home

VENTURA -- A woman was found fatally stabbed in an upscale beach home in Ventura, located just eight miles away from the beach house where a husband and his pregnant wife were stabbed to death two weeks ago.

Wendy DiRodio, 61, died of multiple stab wounds in her bed Wednesday in the Ventura Keys area, according to coroners officials.

DiRodio's body was found by her elderly parents in her locked bedroom, said Ventura police Sgt. Jack Richards.

Authorities wouldn't say whether investigators found any signs of forced entry.

Police scoured the scene for evidence but have not found any weapon, Richards said.

No suspects have been named.

On May 20, Brock and Davina Husted were stabbed in their Faria Beach home by a man wearing a motorcycle helmet. The suspect apparently entered the home through an unlocked sliding glass door.

Authorities said the couple's two children were at home at the time, but were not hurt.

No suspects have been named in those murders.

Police Sgt. Jack Richards said Thursday that authorities have found no direct links between the cases, but sheriff's detectives were called in for further investigation.

Slaying of Ventura Couple May Not Be Random, Police Say

Detectives investigating the murder of a husband and pregnant wife in their beach house near Ventura have drawn no firm conclusions but are leaning toward the possibility that the slayings were not random.

"If we were asked which was the stronger likelihood, it’s that they were targeted -- but we have not ruled out the other possibility,’’ said Capt. Ross Bonfiglio, a spokesman for the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department. Bonfiglio said he could not elaborate without jeopardizing the ongoing investigation.

Brock and Davina Husted, both 42, were stabbed to death by an intruder in their Faria Beach home on May 20 at about 10:30 p.m. The Husteds’ 9-year-old son told police he saw an intruder wearing a motorcycle helmet enter the home through an open patio door and get into a confrontation with his mother in the kitchen and a hallway. Brock Husted, owner of a Santa Barbara wrought-iron company, came to her aid.

The stabbings occurred in a front room of the three-bedroom house and were not directly witnessed by the son, as indicated by earlier police reports. After seeing his parents' bodies, he fled to a neighbor’s house with his 11-year-old sister.

Davina Husted was about five months pregnant. A funeral service is set for Saturday in Ventura. A fund for the children has been set up at 1 West Bank in Camarillo.

Pregnant Mom, Dad Stabbed to Death

A quiet seaside community was jolted by the brutal killings of a husband, wife, and their unborn child, while police say the couple’s young son was watching “American Idol” in the family room.

Authorities in Ventura, California, say they are desperate for information. “We don’t know the motive, or anything about the suspect,” said Sheriff’s Department Capt.Ross Bonfiglio.

According to police, Brock and Davina Husted were killed at about 10:30 P.M. Wednesday night after an intruder entered their beachfront house. The woman was four months pregnant and police are counting the fetus as a third homicide victim. The parents, both 42, were stabbed to death. Captain Bonfigio says the couple was viciously stabbed to death and the knife was recovered at the scene.

Investigators say the French doors on the ocean side of the single family house were left open on the night of the 20th, allowing the intruder access.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office say the couple’s 9-year-old son was watching the finale of “American Idol” when he saw the suspect, who passed in front of him. According to investigators, the killer “confronted Davina, who was in the kitchen,” police said in a press release. “Davina moved to the front portion of the house where the suspect followed and brutally stabbed Davina and Brock to death in one of the other rooms inside of the house.”

Detectives say the son found his parents on the floor and awoke his 11-year-old sister. The two children left the house and contacted a neighbor who called 911.

Captain Bonfigio said he does not know if the Husteds were targeted or the victims of a random home invasion. He said it has been more than a decade since the last homicide was reported in the area.

A massive search is under way to find the killer. Several law enforcement agencies have joined in the hunt.

The press release offers few clues as to the suspect’s identity, except to say he is a man with “a dark complexion wearing a black motorcycle helmet, and possibly wearing a dark or black jumpsuit.”

There is no indication of a motive — and it is unclear if anything was taken from the home. And police have revealed no evidence linking the killer to the victims.

Anyone with information should call the sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau at (805) 477-7000.