Armed Survivalist Sought In Malibu Creek State Park Slaying

MALIBU, CA – Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department scoured Malibu Creek State Park in all-terrain vehicles Tuesday searching for a an armed burglar wanted in connection with the murder of a father camping with his two young daughters in June.

The man seen armed with a rifle and wearing tactical gear broke into a nearby office Sunday morning an stole food. Similar thefts in the area lead authorities to suspect the man may be surviving in the wilderness, and they want to question him in connection with the series of sniper shootings at unsuspecting campers and hikers in the area.

"A video system at the location showed one person who was carrying a rifle," sheriff's officials told the NBC Los Angeles. "The suspect pried open a window to enter the location."

Similar break-ins have occurred at homes and unoccupied offices in the area, and investigators told NBC they believed the burglar could be living in the nearby wilderness to avoid detection by law enforcement. One woman told deputies that she saw the burglar wearing a mask or hood and wearing "tactical-style" clothing.

Officials said it's too soon to know if there's a link between the burglar and the murder of Tristan Beaudette. Authorities are also investigating whether Beaudette's murder is related to other shootings reported in the area, which got little attention at the time.

Related: 5 Shootings Near Malibu Park Within 2 Years, Are They Connected?

Two shootings before the fatal shooting of Beaudette occurred on June 6 and July 22 last year, and another happened on June 18, sheriff's department spokeswoman Nicole Nishida told the Los Angeles Times. Some of the shootings targeted campers, one of which involved a woman who posted video on Facebook of a bullet hole in her vehicle along with photo of a shotgun slug that she said pierced the tailgate as she slept inside.

Los Angeles television stations reported that a Simi Valley woman and her boyfriend had been sleeping in their car's cargo area last January when it was hit by a large shotgun slug.

Meliss Tatangelo says they were awakened by a "large thump" about 5 a.m., but went back to sleep.

"We woke up around 6, left the campsite and went to get coffee. In the parking lot of the coffee shop we hear something rolling around in the back of my car," Tatangelo wrote on Facebook. "I went around the back to open the hatch to see what it was, as I got to the back of my car I saw a huge gapping hole. A bullet hole. Fired at pretty close range. There was a bullet rolling around in the back of my car."

Tatangelo said in the Facebook post that she drove back to the park, called rangers, and had them examine the bullet hole and slug. She said the rangers told her that the slug had been fired at close range into the car.

Another incident happened just days before Beaudette was shot, in which someone fired a gun at a Tesla driving along Malibu Canyon Road, Malibu community activist Cece Woods told the Los Angeles Times. Woods said a bullet hit the car but no one was hurt.

A third incident happened on Nov. 3, 2016, when a man who was hiking the Backbone Trail was hit by a shotgun blast while sleeping overnight in a hammock in Tapia Park about 200 yards from Malibu Canyon Road. James Rogers needed surgery to remove all of the pellets that hit him, he told the Los Angeles Times.

City News Service contributed to this post; Image of Malibu Creek State Park Google Maps