BREA, Calif. (KABC) -- A Glendale man is accused of brutally murdering a couple from Brea, beating the wife with a hammer, shooting them both and setting their bodies on fire in the desert, authorities say. Huangting Gong, 30, of Glendale, is accused of then stealing $250,000 in luxury goods from the couple's home after disposing of their bodies.
Gong has been charged with multiple felony counts of murder, kidnapping, arson and burglary, and faces the possibility of life in prison without parole, or potentially the death penalty, if convicted. Investigators believe Gong owed $80,000 to a business associate, 37-year-old Kuanlun Wang of Brea. Instead of paying up, he allegedly met Wang in the desert on Oct.
12, shot him in the head and put his body in the victim's own Tesla, according to Orange County prosecutors. He drove the Tesla back to Wang's home in Brea and then allegedly attacked the victim's wife, 37-year-old Jing Li, with a hammer to force her to give up her phone's password, the District Attorney's office alleges. He is then accused of driving her to the desert in San Bernardino, shooting her and burning her body.
He allegedly drove back to Brea to pick up Wang's body, setting the body on fire and disposing of him in a desert in Riverside County. He allegedly brought the couple's two Teslas to two different desert areas and also set them on fire. He allegedly returned to the Brea home on Oct.
14 and stole nearly $250,000 in watches, shoes, handbags and clothing. "Dep.
