Trans ‘woman’ dressed as Blues Brother arrested after 7-hour stand off for homicide of actual property tycoon in California
Elanor Beaulieu’s bond has been set at $2 million.
A standoff ensued at a Southern California home on Saturday between authorities and a trans-identified suspect after a retired property developer was found dead inside. Police took Elanor Beaulieu, 39, who was described as being transgender and wearing an outfit similar to those worn in the Blues Brothers, into custody after a seven-hour standoff.
Per the Daily Mail, Hermosa Beach Police arrived at the home at 12:37 pm on Saturday to conduct a welfare check after the upstairs neighbor of 92-year-old Demetrius Doukoullos reported smelling a foul odor from the real estate developer’s unit and seeing a suspicious person entering.
Neighbors said that they regularly saw the man sitting on his porch that overlooks Manhattan Beach, but had not seen him for week, with his porch blinds staying closed. They reported seeing a person wearing a suit and a fedora coming and going from the residence. Since his wife Fredda died at the age of 75 in 2012, Doukoullos had lived alone.
Police said, “With the assistance of the landlord or the realtor, they granted us access to go inside and they located somebody that was inside that did not match the description of the resident.” When they entered the unit, officers said they saw a person run into the bedroom and lock the door. “That person made some type of statement that she was armed and barricaded herself inside of the residence.”
In the hours that followed, police attempted to negotiate with Beaulieu over the phone, and called in the Hermosa Beach/Hawthorne SWAT team. Nearby homes were evacuated. In the evening, an officer warned Beaulieu that authorities would force entry. “Eleanor, come out with your hands up. This has been going on long enough,” the officer shouted.
At around 7:45 pm, Beaulieu surrendered to authorities, walking out of the home with hands in the air. Beaulieu was seen in footage from Easy Reader News wearing a black suit, white shirt, sunglasses, and a fedora similar to those seen in the 1980 hit movie The Blues Brothers.
When authorities searched the unit, they found Doukoullos’ decomposing body. The medical examiner said the body had signs of trauma. Beaulieu was booked into the Los Angeles County Men’s Central Jail on suspicion of murder. Beaulieu’s bond has been set at $2 million.
The Daily Mail reported that Beaulieu had been booked under the suspect’s legal name of Robert Phillip Simmons. However, as of Tuesday afternoon, that name appears to have been updated to Elanor Beaulieu. Beaulieu’s sex is listed as male in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s directory.