Boyfriend Arrested in Killing of South LA Woman Witnessed by Her Children

The longtime boyfriend of a 38-year-old mother of four killed Saturday at the family’s South Los Angeles-area home was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of murder.

Family members told NBCLA that three of the children, ages 13, 8 and 7, witnessed Nicole Santillanes’ killing. Police did not reveal a cause of death, but Santillanes’ family said she had been beaten and stabbed.

Richard Lara, the victim’s live-in boyfriend, was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of murder after three days on the run, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. He was being held on $2 million bail.

Lara shared two children with Santillanes.

“The kids are really strong,” said Ashley Gjurich, the victim’s sister. “Super strong.”

The two left their apartment in the 9800 block of South Broadway Saturday evening on a walk to a neighborhood store. Santillanes returned home first, and when Lara returned, he attacked her following a dispute between the two, police said.

“(The children) said he went straight to the room, and he was picking up anything he could and started hitting her with it, and then he went to the kitchen and got all the big knives, they said,” Gjurich said.

Lara left before police arrived and was arrested in Los Angeles Tuesday by members of the LAPD’s Gang and Narcotics Division. Details about the arrest were not immediately available.

Police said Lara and Santillanes had been together for about 13 years.

“How can you make children with someone and then kill their mother in front of them,” Gjurich said.

Her fourth child is 20, according to a GoFundMe page established on behalf of the family.

Charges could be filed as early as Thursday. It was not immediately clear whether Lara has an attorney.

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline by calling 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), visiting www.thehotline.org or texting LOVEIS to 22522.