
Mourning the loss of a mother is an immeasurable pain, but suspecting it may have happened at the hands of your father is another sorrow entirely. Sadly, wife and mother Sheylla Gutierrez, 33, went missing and her three kids are now living that reality, after she was found dead in a forest in California, on August 16, 2025. Her husband reportedly fled to Peru at some point after she went missing.
At 10 a.m. August 16, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office issued a statement that they found Gutierrez’s body over the side of an embankment in Angeles National Forest. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office has yet to declare an official cause of death.
The young mom went missing on August 12, 2025, and upon the discovery of her body, authorities believe Gutierrez’s suspected killer, husband Jossimar Cabrera, 36, fled to Peru. All three of their children were found safe in person and were taken into protective custody on August 16, per the statement from the sheriff’s office.

Cabrera Reportedly Engaged in Suspicious Activity
The sheriff’s department claims it found security footage of Cabrera “dragging a large object in a large piece of material” from the apartment where they lived with their children, according to NBC News.
Authorities expressed that they believe it was a case of foul play and believe Cabrera is a person of interest. They also noted that the Montrose Mountain Search and Rescue team reported spotting “an object similar to the material that was seen being taken away by the person of interest over the side of an embankment,” which turned out to contain her body, NBC News reported.
Neighbors told the news outlet that they had been the ones to report her missing and claimed she had confided in them that her husband was physically abusive. Her parents also told the station that on August 9, their daughter said she was going to take her kids and leave Cabrera.
The sheriff’s department reportedly plans to present the case to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office to consider filing murder charges against him to guarantee his return to the US.
Per Univision 34, the LA Peruvian consulate confirmed he arrived in Peru with their three kids but could not be detained because there was no official warrant for his arrest.