LAPD announce that they have arrested parolee Charlie Samuel for the murder and abduction of 17 year old Lily Burk. Samuel, a 50 year old career criminal, was arrested by LAPD mounted patrol officers, Ofc. Gary Copeland and Ofc.Miguel Dominguez, in downtown LA for drinking beer in public and having a crack pipe, minutes after he killed Lily Burk. LAPD officials later found Samuel guilty of killing Lily from fingerprints linking him to the crime scene. Lily was abducted last Friday outside the Southwestern University where her mother, Deborah Drooz, worked. Lily was on an errand for her mother to deliver some papers to her.
Charlie Samuel forced Lily to withdrawal funds from a ATM using her credit card. Her credit card would not work, and Lily called her parents asking how to make a cash withdrawal.
Her father, Greg Burk a former LA Weekly colleague, told her it was not set up for that, and to come home.
Lily's parents made several calls in vain to the LAPD to report that she was missing, LAPD would only initially take a missing persons report.
Lily was found dead in the passenger seat of her parent's Volvo near Skid Row in downtown LA at 6:30 am last Saturday.
Samuel is being held without bail at a downtown jail.
My heart along with everyone's at the LA Weekly goes out to the Burk/Drooz family for their tragic loss.
Photos by Ted Soqui c 2009
