Investigators asked the public for help Monday in identifying a person seen on security camera footage shortly after a woman and her daughter were killed in a Rancho Cucamonga home earlier this month.
Detectives investigating the March 7 stabbing deaths of 44-year-old Jia Jia and her 8-year-old daughter Ruby Meng discovered video of a male subject, possibly injured, in close proximity to the victims’ home just moments after the attacks, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department stated in a news release.
The person in the video appears to have a slim build and is wearing a hoodie-style sweatshirt and possibly a face mask. Detectives are interested in identifying and speaking with the person.
An attacker entered the home in the 6800 block of Bergano Place about 3 a.m. through unknown means, then stabbed Jia, Ruby and a family friend in a bedroom before fleeing through a rear sliding door, the Sheriff’s Department stated shortly after the incident took place.
Jia and Ruby were pronounced dead at the scene.
The family friend wounded in the attack was described as a 38-year-old woman. She was taken to a local hospital with injuries that were not expected to be life-threatening. She has not been identified.
Two other family members who were sleeping inside the home were not injured. They are not considered suspects, the Sheriff’s Department stated.
A growing memorial with balloons and flowers dedicated to Ruby and her mother was placed outside Carlton P. Lightfoot Elementary School.
No suspect or motive for the crime has been announced but a search for evidence did turn up the surveillance video.
Detectives are asking for anyone with information that may identify the person in the video to contact Detective Malcolm Page at 909-387-3572.