Slain Woman’s Surgery Scars Led to Suspect

A pair of surgery scars were used to catch the alleged killer of a 79-year-old Chula Vista woman, whose decomposing torso was discovered last week in Coronado, Sheriff’s Department officials said Wednesday.

Mary Louise Asbury, 60, of Chula Vista, was arrested Tuesday in connection with the slaying of Lillian B. Shepherd, whose torso was found in a brown plastic bag last Thursday on a strip of grass in the 500 block of C Avenue, authorities said.

An autopsy on the torso revealed two scars, one from a mastectomy and the other from abdominal surgery that matched those of a Chula Vista woman who had been reported missing to police in April, Sgt. Manny Castillo said.

The tip led sheriff’s investigators to the missing woman’s trailer, where they interviewed her caretaker, Asbury, Castillo said. Disclosures made by Asbury during the interview prompted detectives to obtain a search warrant for the trailer, where they later collected blood samples and other evidence from the bedroom, including the bed.

Asbury was hired at least three years ago by Shepherd, who needed a caretaker for physical ailments, Castillo said. The women shared a trailer in the 1500 block of 3rd Street in Chula Vista.

No motive has been established for the slaying, and Castillo declined to discuss the fate of Shepherd’s missing body parts, including her arms, legs and head.

Detectives are also investigating Asbury’s car and whether she has a criminal record, Castillo said. Asbury is being held without bail at the Las Colinas Jail on suspicion of murder.

No other suspects are being sought in the slaying, Castillo said.

Officials from the county coroner’s office declined to discuss details of Shepherd’ autopsy, including the time and date of death, saying those details are part of the sheriff’s continuing investigation.

According to Castillo, Shepherd had been missing since April 5, but her sister didn’t file a missing person’s report with the Chula Vista Police Department until April 19.

In addition to the identifying scars and the missing person’s report, officials from the coroner’s office also compared spinal X-rays of the torso with those provided by Shepherd’s personal physician to confirm her identity, Castillo said.

Neighbors said they were shocked by the news of Asbury’s arrest.

“Mary is just the loveliest little lady,” said an 80-year-old woman who said she knew both Asbury and Shepherd, and asked that her name not be used.

“Isn’t it something?” the neighbor said. “You see this all the time on TV. You see people who have done these awful crimes, and the neighbors always say, ‘Gee, she was such a nice neighbor.’ But everybody here is just sick over it. Just sick. It’s terrible.”

The woman said Wednesday that she had seen Asbury at a potluck dinner last Saturday and asked about Shepherd.

“I asked (Asbury) if she’d heard from Lillian, and she said, ‘No.’ But then she said she’d better be hearing from her because it was the time of the month when the bills should be paid,” the neighbor said.

“I was very shocked,” said Sylvester Silva, another neighbor. “We thought they got along fine . . . they were together all the time.”

Silva said he believed Asbury became Shepherd’s caretaker after her husband died of cancer in 1988. The Shepherds had apparently lived in the trailer for at least 16 years.

Another neighbor, Marshall Price, 85, said he used to have coffee and doughnuts every Wednesday with both Asbury and Shepherd.

Price said he saw “no tension whatsoever” between the two women. “I didn’t suspect a thing. They were best friends.”

Joggers and neighbors had spotted the bag containing Lillian Shepherd’s torso as early as 5:30 a.m., but, as the morning grew warmer, the bag drew a swarm of flies, neighbors said last week. An animal control officer sent to the scene found that the remains were human.

The discovery marked the second time in a week that decomposing remains were discovered in San Diego County. The dismembered body of Robert R. Evans, 55, was found Friday night in a canyon near Miramar Naval Air Station.

Times staff writer Alan Abrahamson contributed to this article.