Son’s Drug Use Had Worried Murder Victims

Those who worked with John H. Percell at the Monterey Meat Co. said he was usually reticent about discussing his personal life. But last year, Percell, the firm’s vice president, confided in some of them that he was worried that his 30-year-old son had a cocaine problem.

“He was a very reserved man,” recalled Judy Alcala, a secretary at the Monterey Park meat-packing company. “I guess it must have upset him so much that he would mention it.”

Eventually, police said, Percell decided to alert authorities to his son’s drug use.

On Wednesday morning, the bodies of Percell and his wife, Doris Alice, both 61, were found in separate bedrooms of their Sierra Madre home. The couple had been bound and gagged and had gunshot wounds in their heads. A Bible had been placed on Mrs. Percell’s body.

Police are seeking the son, Jeffrey Percell, for questioning.

“Obviously, we want to talk to him in a very strong way,” Sheriff’s Lt. Ken Chausse said. “He was the last person to see them alive.”

Chausse said investigators have been told by friends and neighbors of the couple that the younger Percell had threatened his parents after they reported his drug use to authorities, but added, “Whether or not we have enough to file a case against him right now is questionable.”

The first call to police that something might be wrong at the Percell ranch-style home came from an employee of the Monterey Meat Co. on Tuesday morning when the elder Percell, who was known for his punctuality, did not show up for his 3:30 a.m. shift. Sierra Madre police went to the couple’s house Tuesday evening and were met at the door by their son, who told officers that his parents had gone to a hospital, Chausse said.

When police returned Wednesday morning and discovered the bodies, Jeffrey Percell was gone, as was his mother’s cream-colored Mercedes-Benz, he said. As of late Thursday, neither Percell nor the car had been located.

Jeffrey Percell had been arrested for possession of cocaine in the parking lot of a Commerce hotel in October, 1985, according to records in East Los Angeles Municipal Court.

In an interview with probation officers, Jeffrey Percell insisted that the cocaine was not his and said he had never used the drug, although he did admit smoking marijuana. The court assigned him to a drug diversion program, which he successfully completed.

The younger Percell was arrested again in March, 1986, for passing bad checks. He pleaded no contest and was placed on two years’ probation.

Detectives said Jeffrey Percell lived with his parents intermittently, spending months at a time away from the suburban foothill community. He told neighbors that he worked seasonally as a maintenance worker at Yosemite National Park, but the personnel office there had no record of him.

According to Chausse, friends and neighbors of the family have told detectives that Jeffrey Percell--a short, husky man with reddish-blond hair and a full, red beard--first threatened his parents last year after they notified officials that he was back on drugs. Investigators, however, are still trying to locate the law enforcement agency that the parents turned to, he said.

“The parents were in fear of their own safety with their son in the house, yet he remained in the house,” Chausse said.

But several neighbors told reporters that Jeffrey Percell was a well-mannered man who seemed to get along well with his parents.

“He was very shy, very nice and polite,” said neighbor Marti Olson, who was “totally shocked” by the shootings.

“As far as I know, they got along fine,” another neighbor, Louise Corp, said of the family.

Olson said Doris Percell told her she felt safer with her son in the house.

“She told me she was very relieved to have Jeff living with them,” Olson said, adding that Mrs. Percell had seemed preoccupied with safety since 1985, when a teen-age girl was slain on their street. “I would characterize her as being extremely paranoid about security and break-ins.”

An Avid Gardner

Mrs. Percell was described as an avid gardener who often gave flower arrangements to her neighbors. She was a religious woman who invited neighbors to attend church with her and her husband. Corp said she and Mrs. Percell attended hospital auxiliary functions together.

Corp pointed to a flower arrangement that adorned her front yard. “A couple of days ago, she left that bouquet for me,” the neighbor said. “She was just plain nice.”

Times staff writer Terry Pristin also contributed to this report.