Twisted past emerges as friend of suspect in LA love-triangle murder says violence wasn’t a shock

A tangled past comes to light as a family friend of the LA love-triangle murder suspect reveals that violence was always expected.

The close family friend who watched Emily Emerald Vogdt, 27, grow up told The California Post he’s not surprised Vogdt was accused of a horrific murder.

When approached about the case before hearing of Carla Maribel Rodriguez’s slaying, Gustavo Mosquera’s first words about Vogdt were:

“Her family had a lot of trauma. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was on drugs or had probably killed someone.”

Vogdt, who was born female but identifies as a trans man, is currently in an all-female jail on $3,075,000 bail — charged with the March 22 murder of Rodriguez at their Beverly Grove home and cruelty to the victim’s terrier-mix dog, Prince, who also died in the attack.

The 44-year-old West Hills resident revealed Vogdt shaved her hair as a teenager and began dressing and behaving like a man.

“She started shaving her hair when she was a teenager,” Mosquera recalled. “She was walking like a dude, already imitating men. She often wore black pants, a leather jacket, and sunglasses. People who knew her said she looked like a guy.”

Emily’s grandmother, Paula Vogdt, told Mosquera she was unhappy that her troubled family member preferred to be male.

“Paula was very upset because she said that neighbors are going to think she’s gay,” Mosquera said.

“Our meeting today is not a surprise. Emily did not have guidance in her life; unfortunately, the only person she knew was her mom, but their relationship was not good. She didn’t have a mentor, and her mom was not the best person.”

Paula, a hairdresser, built a valuable real estate portfolio, including commercial property on Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks.

Mosquera, whose insurance salesman dad rented office space from Paula for many years, became close friends with her, helped with her bookkeeping, and was later given the authority to make medical decisions for her.

“Paula was the biggest sweetheart in the world,” Mosquera told the Post, adding that Paula’s daughter Anita and Emily, her only child, were “too busy” to help care for Paula.

When Paula’s health began deteriorating, Anita and Emily, who lived in an apartment owned by Paula, “came out of the woodwork.”

Mosquera said Anita and Emily were so difficult to work with that the trustee handling Paula’s trust quit three months after her passing because he “couldn’t deal with crazy.”

He was last in touch with Vogdt in July 2013 when Paula was being treated in the ICU shortly before her passing.

“All the neighbors knew she was a hermit,” he added of Vogdt. “The whole neighborhood knew Emily didn’t go to school. They were worried about that girl.”

Mosquera revealed that Anita and her daughter started burning through their inheritance after Paula died.

“I was sure Emily would go downhill after they got their hands on the trust because there was so much money.”

“They never worked for it. They didn’t work a day in their lives. Paula supported them both and gave them a place to live … They started spending money really quickly. Anita bought a BMW, and Emily had a black Tesla.”

“When Anita died, Emily continued to spend.”

Mosquera said Vogdt also showed flashes of violence when she was growing up.

Once, the young girl fired a gun inside her home for target practice, and the bullets went through the property and hit a business across the street.

Also, the cops were called, said Mosquera, when Vogdt attacked her mom and “punched her teeth out.”

After Paula died, Anita and her daughter became “slumlords” and failed to maintain the commercial property she inherited. It became abandoned, homeless people moved in, and later it was sold to developers for millions.

Mosquera said of Vogdt, “I knew things wouldn’t be good for her because she just didn’t have guidance. I thought she’d probably be into drugs with the amount of money that she got.”

He said the girl he helped look after years ago never knew her father’s identity. Her mother, Anita, died in 2022 at the age of 65.

“The moment you said, Emily, I already knew – I’m not surprised that she killed someone.”

Carla Maribel Rodriguez, 48, was shot multiple times and killed in the $2.4 million Beverly Grove home she shared with Vogdt in what police described as a “domestic dispute.”

Rodriguez was found shortly before 8:30 a.m., along with her beloved dog, who was also fatally shot.

Vogdt’s arraignment is scheduled for April 29.

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