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Pasadena stabbing deaths: Police ID Chefs Center general manager, wife, as victims
A screenshot from Larry Bressler's Facebook page shows Bressler and his wife, Denise. The two were fatally stabbed Monday by Bressler's cousin.
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Screenshot from Larry Bressler's Facebook page
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The director of operations at Chefs Center, a commercial kitchen-for-rent that has served as a springboard for culinary startups, was killed along with his wife in a double stabbing at their Pasadena apartment, and the suspect who was arrested was a relative, police confirmed Tuesday.
Lawrence Bressler, 50, and Denise K. Bressler, 64, were repeatedly stabbed inside the apartment they shared with the suspect, 29-year-old Jacob Mallory Bersson, who was Bressler's cousin, according to a statement from Pasadena police.
Bressler reportedly called 911 at some point during the attack. Officers responding to the call found Berrson a block from the residence with a laceration on his left arm. Berrson was booked for murder after being transported to a local hospital and then medically cleared for release. He was being held on $1 million bail.
Paramedics took Bressler and his wife to the hospital, but they later died.
Joe Coletti, founder of Chefs Center, told the Pasadena Star-News that Bressler’s shoes will be tough to fill:
“There are so many businesses that owe their success to Larry that I can’t even quote the number,” Coletti said. “The loss is huge.”
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Among the startups that have offered testimonials to Chefs Center: gourmet creamery Coolhaus, Filipino-inspired barbecue restaurant The Park's Finest, and food truck Slammin’ Sliders.
Bressler was also an instructor, having taught at Le Cordon Bleu culinary school in Pasadena for 11 years, according to the Star-News.
The Chefs Center posted a series of messages to its Facebook page about the loss.
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