Lorella B. Lepper, known to friends as Lori, was 32 years old when her death was recorded on Friday, November 29, 2002, in the Carthay area on the west side of Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, she died of stab wounds at 1042 S. La Cienega Blvd. Her death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Los Angeles Police Department case, assigned to the Wilshire Division.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report described her as "a 32-year-old white female" who "died Friday, Nov. 29, after being stabbed in Carthay." The date in that entry is the day she was found, not the day she was attacked. In a news release dated December 2, 2002, the LAPD said Wilshire Area homicide detectives were investigating "the stabbing death of Lorella Lepper," which "occurred between November 26, 2002, at 8:00 p.m., and November 27, 2002 at 11:00 a.m."
On November 29, at about 2:15 p.m., patrol officers responded to a call at 1040 South La Cienega Boulevard, where they were directed to her body. She "had been discovered by the apartment manager." The department added: "The motive is unknown and there is no suspect description."
Lepper had a following well beyond her neighborhood. The music news site Blabbermouth reported in December 2002 that she was "the webmaster of former GUNS N' ROSES bassist Duff McKagan's web site, www.loadedonline.com," and that she "was stabbed to death by an unknown assailant at her Los Angeles residence." The same report said her body "was claimed by her family, who are said to reside in Italy." A paid death notice for her appeared through the Los Angeles Times that month.
The case did not fade quietly. In June 2004, Blabbermouth reported that McKagan, by then playing bass in Velvet Revolver, would appear in a segment of "America's Most Wanted" focusing on "the unsolved murder of Lorella Lepper, webmaster for McKagan's previous band, LOADED." Years later, members of the online true crime forum Websleuths opened a thread on her case, noting that the television segment had been hard to track down.
Carthay is a small, mostly residential district on the west side of Los Angeles, between Beverly Hills and the Miracle Mile. La Cienega Boulevard is one of the busiest north to south streets on the Westside, lined with apartment buildings, shops and restaurants.
Homicides in Los Angeles rose sharply in the early 2000s, climbing past 600 in 2002, and detectives carried heavy caseloads. Many killings from those years were never solved.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Lorella B. Lepper could be found in news archives or public records. More than 23 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Detectives asked anyone with information to contact the Wilshire Homicide Unit, and directed tips to Detective Holroyd or Parshall at 213-473-0405 or 213-473-0444. Anyone who knew Lori Lepper, who followed her work on the band's website, or who was near the 1000 block of South La Cienega Boulevard in the last days of November 2002 may hold information that could help. Even a small detail, such as a name overheard, a vehicle seen nearby or a conversation remembered, can help detectives move a case forward. Anyone with information can call the Los Angeles Police Department at 877-527-3247 (877-LAPD-24-7), or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).
