Naman Shrestha
In the episode titled ‘Why is Daddy on TV?’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘Evil Lives Here,’ the primary focus is on the multiple attacks Letisha Alves suffered at the hands of her ex-husband. The documentary also chronicles the horrific murder of 82-year-old Helen Huff in October 1997 in her house in La Cañada Flintridge. The swift investigation led the authorities to the perpetrator responsible for the gruesome crime, for which he was punished.
Helen Huff Was Found Dead in Her La Cañada Flintridge House
Born around the mid-1910s, Helen Howell Huff was a resident of La Cañada Flintridge, California, where she led a rather peaceful life. Described as a gentle artist by her loved ones and neighbors, the elderly woman was ambushed inside her house in October 1997. The authorities responded to a complaint and rushed to her house on Gould Avenue, where they were met with a gruesome crime scene. According to reports, she was found dead in her master bedroom. According to the medical examiner, the 82-year-old victim had been raped, beaten, and had her neck broken. The cause of her death was blunt force trauma to the head. Upon inspecting the crime scene, the detectives noticed that a vehicle was missing from her driveway, leading them to believe that the perpetrator had escaped in it.
Helen Huff’s Killer Reportedly Assaulted and Threatened Her Ex-Wife
As part of the investigation, the detectives looked into Helen Huff’s life in the weeks and months prior to her brutal killing. That’s when they learned that her daughter was romantically involved with a man named Phillip Jimenez Sifuentes, also known as Sha-Ahwa Sebastian Parker. However, he didn’t seem to be an ideal guy, as a couple of weeks before her demise, Helen had reportedly filed a criminal complaint against him, accusing him of stealing $3,000 from her bank account. She claimed that he had taken the responsibility of painting her house, during which he allegedly came across her ATM card in her purse along with the PIN written on a slip of paper.
According to her complaint, she believed that he had stolen the card on multiple occasions in September 1997 and returned it to its place after allegedly withdrawing thousands of dollars from her account. It was only after she received the bank statement in October that she noticed the withdrawals. Soon after she filed the complaint, Phillip reportedly fatally attacked her in her house and fled the scene. As they dug deeper into his past, they found out about his violent nature towards his ex-wife, Letisha Alves. She and Phillip had eloped in Las Vegas, Nevada, after he allegedly threatened to kill her parents if she refused to do so. However, since their marriage had deteriorated due to his alleged violent behavior towards Letisha, she filed for divorce.
Shortly after, she welcomed their daughter, after which Phillip reportedly spent several weeks in rehab. However, his violent tendencies got the better of him again as he struck her in the parking lot of a grocery store in front of an off-duty police officer and threatened to kill her and her family. Soon, he was arrested and charged with assault. Fast forward to his connection to Helen’s death, the authorities started a manhunt for the suspect, who eventually turned himself in a few days later. As per some reports, he was first arrested for a parole violation, which stemmed from a domestic assault he committed on his ex-wife, Letisha Alves, while they worked on gathering enough evidence to charge him with murder.
Phillip Sifuentes Passed Away A Few Years After His Release
In order to get a reduced sentence and avoid trial, Phillip Sifuentes pleaded guilty to the manslaughter and three other felony charges against him. Thus, he was sentenced to a total of 14 years in prison. However, after getting credited for time already served behind bars, he was released in 2007. After his release, the killer reportedly stayed away from the limelight and didn’t reach out to his ex-wife. A few years later, on December 10, 2010, he died of Cirrhosis of the liver.
Read More: Donna Macho Murder: What Happened to Nathaniel Harvey?
