Crime & Safety

Redondo Murder Suspect Found Dead on Utah Highway

Russell Scott Goldberg, a suspect in the slaying of his ex-wife, Peggy Goldberg, shot and killed himself in Utah, authorities say.

Russell Scott Goldberg, who Redondo Beach police identified as a suspect in the shooting death of his wife, committed suicide Wednesday night in the middle of Interstate 15 in Utah, according to Utah law enforcement.

According to a statement from the Redondo Beach Police Department, a SWAT team approached Goldberg's Saturn Vue, which was stopped on the interstate after running over spike strips, and found Goldberg dead of a gunshot wound.

The standoff, which forced the closure of the interstate, lasted for more than three hours. It started when a trooper spotted the Vue headed northbound and tried to pull him over. Goldberg refused and led troopers on a chase before authorities stopped him by spiking his tires.

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Goldberg, who was armed, was the only occupant of the vehicle.

Goldberg is suspected of killing Margaret Ann "Peggy" Goldberg on Wednesday morning. Officers discovered body of Peggy Goldberg—who went by Peggy Duffy—in her apartment on Agate Street after receiving a call from someone in New York who was concerned about her safety.

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Russell Goldberg was identified as a person of interest within hours, and police distributed fliers with a photo of Goldberg's car around Agate Street. Neighbor Chanel Caprio said she has seen Goldberg's car "driving up and down" streets in the area. "I was like, 'Oh, I know that car. I've seen that car before,'" Caprio said.

At the time, she said, she thought he was looking for a parking spot.

The two had two children—Brian, 10, and Maddy, 13—who are students at Jefferson Elementary and Parras Middle School. The children are safe, police said.

Neighbor Shari Twidwell said Russell Goldberg, who had been separated from Peggy Goldberg for several years before the contentious divorce became final recently, had threatened his ex-wife.

“We had all been telling Peggy that he was dangerous, and she believed he was dangerous, too,” Twidwell told Patch.

Peggy Goldberg was a “good neighbor,” Twidwell said. “She watched out for her own kids and everybody else’s … She was part of (the community).”

Russell Goldberg “was the only enemy she had,” Twidwell said.

Twidwell said she and other residents of the “sleepy street” were shocked at the news. “You just can’t believe it,” she said. “I’ve been talking about it (but) I still don’t believe it.”


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