Missing Woman’s Body Found in Philadelphia; Police Investigate Possible Connection to Son’s Fatal Hiking Trip
Philadelphia police are looking into a link between a missing lady discovered wrapped in plastic and her son’s deadly hiking expedition in California 20 years ago.
Lola Karabaeva, 61, was discovered on Wednesday in a closet at a residence on the 9000 block of Diplomat Place in Philadelphia’s Bustleton neighborhood.
Her spouse, Vladimir Lushevskiy, was first arrested on allegations of abuse of a corpse, but his charges were enhanced on Friday.
According to the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, Lushevskiy is now facing charges of homicide, strangling, tampering with evidence, and obstruction. Police said investigators are looking into whether Lushevskiy killed Karabaeva in a fight regarding their son’s disappearance and death while trekking in California over 20 years ago.
According to law enforcement officials, detectives are also investigating whether Lushevskiy killed Karabaeva on his late son’s birthday, October 12.
Karabaeva was last spotted on October 12.
Eugene Lushevskiy was 19 years old and on a gap year after high school when he went trekking on Mount Baldy in Claremont, California, according to archived CBS News Los Angeles reporting.
Eugene never descended from the mountain. He had been missing for several years, with no sign except for a camera found in his rucksack, which showed vistas of snowcapped mountains and forests, as well as a conversation with a ski lift operator about going camping.
The tape also showed Lushevskiy filming an overnight campfire on the mountain.
However, a body was not discovered until years later.
According to a documented report from the San Bernadino County Sheriff’s Office’s search and rescue teams, teams from West Valley Search and Rescue were put onto the mountain peak via helicopter in 2010. The teams spent the afternoon combing difficult terrain for human remains and discovered several potential pieces of evidence.
The following year, evidence from the search was identified as Lushevskiy’s remains, according to the report.
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