Carl Grillmair, a 67-year-old famed Caltech scientist and astrophysicist, was found dead outside his Los Angeles County home in a remote area where Grillmair had chosen to watch the stars at night. Grimmeier is credited with discovering the galactic stream. The shooting occurred Monday when police received reports of an assault with a deadly weapon around 6 a.m. Emergency crews attempted life-saving measures, but Grimmire was pronounced dead, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said. Around the same time, a carjacking occurred in the same area and 29-year-old Freddy Snyder was arrested. Snyder has been named a suspect in Grimmeier’s homicide. Snyder was arrested Wednesday on charges of murder, carjacking and burglary. He is being held on $2 million bail.Investigators have not released any motive, and it is unclear whether Snyder knew the scientist. Grimmeier worked at Caltech’s Infrared Processing and Analysis Center, which collaborates with NASA. Caltech confirmed in a statement to Los Angeles news station KTLA that Grimmire was the victim of the shooting.
Murder investigation is ongoing
As the investigation into his murder continues, Grimmeier’s friends and colleagues at Caltech remember his contributions. Astronomer Sergio Fajardo-Acosta told the Los Angeles Times that he was “very famous in astronomy and a very famous scientist.”“His legacy will live on forever,” Fajardo-Acosta added. He told the publication that Grimmire liked living in a remote area of the Antelope Valley so he could watch the stars at night. Grimmeier even built an observatory with several telescopes at home and flew airplanes in his spare time.Grimmeier was awarded the NASA Medal for Distinguished Scientific Achievement. According to his biography, his work focuses on dark matter, galaxy structure, stellar populations, and exoplanets.
