Two men found buried on remote Lancaster property identified as Ricky Phillips, 61, and Edward Perez, 46

-
The Southbound 105 cover graphic reading "UPDATE: Lancaster victims identified" over a file photo of the Antelope Valley desert, not the scene.

Cover photo: Rennett Stowe, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons; cropped, darkened and text added by The Southbound 105. File photo of the Antelope Valley; not the scene.

By The Southbound 105 | Oct. 2, 2026

LANCASTER — The two people whose remains were found buried on a remote Lancaster property Sept. 29 have been identified as Ricky Phillips, 61, and Edward Perez, 46, both of the Lancaster area. The Los Angeles County medical examiner released their names Thursday, Oct. 1, and the Sheriff's Department confirmed the identifications, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Both men had been reported missing in September. The Sheriff's Department said Phillips was reported missing Sept. 10 and Perez on Sept. 19. NBC Los Angeles reported that the department issued a missing-person bulletin for Phillips on Sept. 11, saying he was last seen Aug. 30 in the 44900 block of 10th Street West.

Search at the property is over

The search at the roughly 15-acre property near East Avenue F and 50th Street East has ended, sheriff's Deputy Justin Pyon told the Times on Thursday night. Investigators spent two days digging at the site with cadaver dogs, shovels and a backhoe. No additional remains have been reported.

What has not been released

The causes and manners of the men's deaths remain under investigation, NBC Los Angeles reported. No arrests have been made, and no suspects have been publicly identified.

The Sheriff's Department has not said whether Phillips and Perez knew each other or were connected in any way, or whether the property's owner is connected to the case, according to the Times and CBS Los Angeles. The department said the deaths remain under active homicide investigation and that it would not release more details for now.

How the remains were found

Homicide Bureau detectives were serving a search warrant connected to a missing-person investigation when they found the remains around noon Tuesday, Sept. 29, according to the department and CBS LA. The department has not said which missing-person case led investigators to the property, and it declined to tell CBS LA what brought detectives there.

"Based on the circumstances surrounding the discovery, the case is now being investigated as a homicide. Homicide investigators are in the early stages of investigating the scene," the department said in a news release quoted by CBS LA at the time.

On Sept. 29, KTLA news helicopter footage, cited by the Times, showed investigators digging a hole inside what appeared to be an old greenhouse. Deputies set up a white pop-up tent and photographed the scene, and FOX 11 reported that cadaver dogs were used in the search.

On Sept. 30, investigators shifted their focus from the greenhouse to an area nearer a home on the property, the Times reported. KTLA's Sky5 helicopter captured medical examiner investigators and sheriff's personnel working beneath a tent, while deputies with shovels and a backhoe worked nearby, according to the Times. CBS LA reported that crews dug a new hole in a different location.

"The location that we were searching is a very large property," sheriff's Homicide Lt. Chris Oakley told CBS LA that day. "Because there was a possibility we could be finding human remains, we wanted to make sure that we had the right personnel with us."

CBS LA described the site as extremely remote, with several rundown buildings and recreational vehicles several hundred yards from where deputies were digging. Oakley said the cause of the deaths would be determined by the medical examiner, the Times reported.

Second property searched

Detectives also searched a second Lancaster property, in the 43000 block of Blooming Park Street, on Sept. 29, according to the Times and ABC7. A man there was briefly handcuffed and placed in a patrol car before being released. Neither he nor anyone else was arrested, the Times reported. Authorities have not said how long the remains may have been on the Avenue F property.

How to share information

Anyone with information is asked to call the LASD Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Tips can be left anonymously with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or at lacrimestoppers.org.

The Southbound 105 will update this story as the Sheriff's Department and the medical examiner release more information.

Sources

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Flea-borne typhus outbreak confirmed in Wilshire Center as LA County cases keep climbing

-
Image
Seven people sickened and six hospitalized in the county's second neighborhood typhus cluster of 2026. Health officials say the risk reaches well beyond Koreatown. LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles County health officials are investigating an outbreak of flea-borne typhus in Wilshire Center, the dense Mid-Wilshire neighborhood that overlaps Koreatown, after seven people with symptoms were linked to the cluster. Six of the seven were hospitalized. All have recovered, the Department of Public Health said when it announced the outbreak on Tuesday, Sept. 22. It is the second flea-borne typhus outbreak the department has reported this year. The first, announced July 29, involved five people in nearby Pico-Union; all five were hospitalized and later recovered. Countywide, Public Health has counted 109 typhus cases so far in 2026. As of Friday, Sept. 25, the department had not announced any additional cases tied to the Wilshire Center cluster. As flea-borne typhus cases continue to inc...
Read more

Nightclub, Tahiti trip and ‘ghost’ clients: Feds charge three in LA homelessness-fraud crackdown

-
Image
A Culver City nonprofit founder is accused of diverting more than $7.5 million meant for homeless housing through sham vendors. His arraignment is set for Oct. 22, and prosecutors say more cases are coming. LOS ANGELES — Federal prosecutors on Wednesday, Sept. 16, charged three people tied to Los Angeles-area homelessness nonprofits with fraud and bribery, alleging that money meant to house unhoused people paid instead for a nightclub, luxury travel, a vintage car restoration and video games. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, HUD Secretary Scott Turner and District Attorney Nathan Hochman were among the officials at the downtown announcement. “Nobody was minding the shop. There's no vetting. There's no auditing. There's no accounting. It was just a rush to push as much money out the door. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, responding to a question from LAist All defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty; the charges are allegations. ...
Read more
-
Image
  Metro sets more I-105 Express Lanes full closures near Downey and Norwalk LOS ANGELES- Metro plans six of directional full freeway closures on the 105fwy Between the 710fwy and 605fwy starting Sept 17th , as crews begin Segment 3 Express Lanes work toward Studebaker Road near Norwalk, According to a Metro project notice. Segment 3 construction between the 710 and Studebaker Road is expected to finish in 2029 Metro said. The September closures are needed to restripe lanes and set up work zones for upcoming construction. Corresponding ramps will close with freeway segments, the notice said. The scheduled nights include eastbound closures Sept 17th (710 to Lakewood BLVD exit) Sept 18th (Lakewood to Bellflower exits) and Sept 21-22 (Bellflower to the 605), generally with HOV and inside lane closures from 8pm and full closures from midnight to 5am. Westbound closures are listed for Sept 24th (605 to Lakewood ) and Sept 25th (Lakewood to Garfield Ave) with full closures roughly midnigh...
Read more