More than three months after the shocking murder of 35-year-old father Tristan Beaudette at Malibu Creek State Park, the investigation was back in the spotlight this weekend as a manhunt took place for a suspected burglar.
On June 22, Beaudette, a chemist and father of two young girls, was shot and killed while camping at Malibu Creek. The slaying, which is still unsolved, launched an interagency investigation and sparked a media frenzy which has continued into the fall. The manhunt that took place this weekend was the first time a suspect of any kind has been identified by sheriff’s deputies.
On Sunday, Sept. 30, an armed man in “tactical gear” was seen on surveillance footage stealing food from a business near the park, raising the concerns of officials at the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station. Then on Saturday, an employee at Tapia Park (adjacent to Malibu Creek) tipped off investigators that the same man may be in the park.
“We haven’t linked it (to Beaudette’s killing), but we certainly haven’t ruled it out,” Sgt. Matthew Dunn of the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station told Malibu Patch on Saturday.
The suspect might be a transient living in the park, Dunn added.
A manhunt in the park, which involved helicopters and bloodhounds, lasted until sundown and made headlines across the greater Los Angeles area—but no suspect was located.
Despite there being no official link between the burglary suspect and Beaudette’s killing, there remained concern in the community. On Tuesday evening, nearby Pepperdine University released a statement to the campus community saying it, “advises that the Pepperdine community exercise caution and avoid … Malibu Creek State Park during this investigation while the park campground is closed.”
California State Parks Angeles District Superintendent Craig Sap said the LASD is spearheading the investigation, with the support of park rangers.
“At this point, all we’re doing is we’re assisting the sheriff’s department,” Sap described in a phone call with The Malibu Times. “They’re the ones doing the investigations; they’re the ones deployed when there’s a credible sighting. State Parks is there if necessary.”
With campgrounds still closed at Malibu Creek until at least November 1, Sap said the district has been meeting to consider increased security measures throughout the Malibu sector: specifically considering security cameras and updated internet connectivity.
“We’re looking at all kinds of technologies, up to and including cameras,” Sap described, later adding, “We do already provide wifi in all our parks, or at least the majority of our parks … We can’t do cameras to the degree we want to do them without increasing the internet capability.”
The superintendent stressed that implementing surveillance cameras and improving wifi would be considered for other area parks, not just Malibu Creek, but the murder of Beaudette “certainly … prompted us to look at rolling this out sooner.”
Plans were still being finalized, and officials had not determined what the cost of upgrades might be.
“This is a preliminary discussion,” Sap said.
As of Tuesday, Oct. 9, the campground was not taking new reservations until Nov. 1.
“It’s effectively closed,” Sap said. “Reservations, we’ve cancelled, and that’s done up to Nov. 1. Up to next week or so, we’ll look at additional cancellations.”
Day use areas in the park remain open to the public, and campers staying at other area California State Parks are welcome to enter and park at Malibu Creek for free.
