The wealthy California physician who was found dead with his wife in their $1.3 million home was actually executed by their own son, who then drove away, set his car on fire, and used the same gun to take his own life, police said.
Eric Cordes, 63, and his wife Vicki, 66, were found dead after being shot several times by Keith Cordes, 37, in the garage of their upscale Simi Valley home around noon on Sunday. Police believe Keith, the suspected gunman, who had been living in Kentucky, then drove about 70 miles to Chino after the attack, where he set his vehicle on fire and then committed suicide.
Killed by Their Own Son
Authorities didn't release the suspect's name until Tuesday, when the San Bernardino County medical examiner confirmed that the badly burned body found in the car belonged to Keith Cordes. Investigators say they're still working to understand what might have driven Cordes to kill his father and stepmother.
Officials noted that the extent of the burns on his body made it difficult to identify him at first. A handgun — believed to be the same one used in the killings — was also found inside the burned vehicle.
Police were able to track the car Cordes drove from the murder scene to Chino using license plate recognition cameras, and records showed the vehicle was registered in his name.
Detectives said the body was so badly burned that they couldn't identify him at first. But license plate–reading cameras helped them trace Keith's black Honda Civic from the murder scene all the way to Chino, where he eventually stopped near Ayala Park.
Friends, colleagues, and community members have been sharing touching tributes to the couple in the wake of the tragedy.
Eric Cordes, a longtime doctor and radiologist at Adventist Health Simi Valley Hospital, was remembered by hospital president Alice Issai as a "beloved" figure in the local medical community. She said he had cared for patients in Simi Valley for nearly three decades "with compassion and excellence," adding that everyone at the hospital is "heartbroken" by what happened.
Happy Till They Got Killed
Photos of Eric and Vicki show them happy, loved-up, and enjoying life together. Both had been married before and each had children. Mike Hylton, a neighbor who rushed over after hearing the gunshots, described the scene at the end of the cul-de-sac as chaotic and overwhelming.
"I didn't hear the gunshots, my son did. He was upstairs and the window was open so he heard the gunshots and then looked out the window and saw the car speeding away, a black little Honda Civic," Hylton told KABC.
"There wasn't a whole lot anybody could do. I think the shooter did what he set out to do very quickly."
A Simi Valley resident posted a heartbreaking tribute on Facebook for Eric and Vicki, noting that Vicki had only recently become a grandmother.
"We are in numb shock that our friend is gone. Earlier this year, we were in Simi and took over her Thursday morning spin class, which was my old class. We took this pic and she let me teach it," Raul Gomez wrote in a Monday night post.
"Vicki was the one who challenged Lanie and I to become spin instructors over 20 years ago. She and her husband Eric were senselessly shot in their driveway yesterday. Our hearts are beyond broken. She had recently become a grandma."
