SAN DIEGO —  A man suspected of placing his wife’s body in a freezer at their Allied Gardens home allegedly forced a friend at gunpoint to help conceal the death, according to an autopsy report unsealed Thursday.

The report by the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office also states the body of Margaret Haxby-Jones was only discovered last December after her husband suffered a stroke and the friend came forward to tell the woman’s family where the body had been hidden for approximately nine years.

The details come a week after San Diego police revealed their suspicions around the involvement of the husband, Robert Haxby, who died in February. Police said they investigated the possibility that Haxby hid the body so his wife’s benefits would continue to be paid out. However, investigators could not gather enough evidence to prosecute the case.

Police did not respond to requests for comment Thursday on whether the unnamed friend who allegedly helped hide the body was being investigated for any possible crimes. A spokesperson for the district attorney referred questions to police.

The body was discovered at the home on Zion Avenue near Eldridge Street, where Haxby-Jones and her husband lived.

The friend who spoke with investigators said she had died from natural causes at 72 years old, the autopsy report says. She was reportedly obese, in a declining state of health and suffered from dementia. However, the autopsy report states that, due to the prolonged concealment of the body, the cause of death could not be determined.

Her husband concealed her death for financial purposes, according to the report. He coerced the friend, reportedly at gunpoint, to help move the body into a chest freezer in the backyard of the house, officials said. The body was concealed with a tarp, and the friend was sworn to secrecy.

Upon the discovery of her body, the life of Haxby-Jones became a mystery to solve for the Allied Gardens community.

Haxby-Jones had worked for 20 years as a nurse anesthetist before she resigned her post in 1999.

Haxby-Jones purchased the Zion Avenue home in the mid-1980s, according to a woman connected to the family who spoke to the Union-Tribune. She married her husband but the two ran afoul of the Internal Revenue Service and a lien of $13,000 was put on the home.

The issue with the IRS was resolved around the same time as her disappearance in 2015.

Between 2013 and 2020, police responded to the home nearly 20 times for calls ranging from welfare checks to mental health situations to reports of elder abuse. None of these calls led to the discovery of her body.

According to the autopsy report, three weeks before her body was discovered, Haxby-Jones’ husband was admitted to the hospital. When his death became imminent, the friend told the family on Dec. 21 that Haxby-Jones was in a freezer on the property behind the house that was “excessively cluttered with belongings,” the autopsy report reads.

The family went over to the home and did not initially find the freezer that night. But the next day, the family returned and found the freezer tucked against the outside wall of the house, according to the report.

It was determined that the last time Haxby-Jones had been seen alive was about 10 years earlier, according to the report. She would have been 81 years old at the time of her discovery.

Police last week said the case has been placed on inactive status pending new information.

Lunetta writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune.

• U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said he told the European Union it must reduce its trade gap with the U.S. through oil and gas purchases or face tariffs.
• Enrico Letta, former prime minister of Italy, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Friday that the EU needed to be prepared to retaliate to Trump’s threat.
• Donald Trump made threats of sweeping tariffs on U.S. trading partners a key part of his presidential campaign.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Friday said he told the European Union it must reduce its trade gap with the U.S. through oil and gas purchases or face tariffs.

“I told the European Union that they must make up their tremendous deficit with the United States by the large scale purchase of our oil and gas. Otherwise, it is TARIFFS all the way,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform shortly after 1 a.m. ET.

According to U.S. figures, the country’s goods and services trade deficit with the European Union was $131.3 billion in 2022.

A senior EU diplomat, who did not want to be named due to the sensitivity of the topic, told CNBC’s Silvia Amaro that they were not surprised by Trump’s comment Friday and that energy was a “good option” for buying more U.S. goods.

Another EU official, who also did not want to be named for the same reason, told Amaro that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke with Trump last night.

The comment comes after EU heads of state held their final meeting of the year on Thursday, during which the topic of Europe-U.S. relations was discussed.

“The message is clear: the European Union is committed to continue working with the United States, pragmatically, to strengthen transatlantic ties,” European Council President António Costa said following the meeting.

Trump has made threats of sweeping tariffs on U.S. trading partners including China, Mexico and Canada a signature part of his presidential campaign — and he’s continued the narrative as he prepares to enter office, despite economists warning of risks to domestic inflation.

Analysts say there is high uncertainty over the extent of the tariffs Trump will be willing — or able — to follow through with, and how much of his rhetoric is a starting point for striking deals.

Enrico Letta, former prime minister of Italy and dean of the IE School of Politics, Economics and Global Affairs, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Friday that the EU needed to be prepared to retaliate to Trump’s threat.

“I think it is a transactional approach, we have to respond to this transactional approach. [Trump] mixes together energy and tariffs on goods, manufacturing and so on. I think it’s incorrect because the two topics are completely different,” Letta said.

“If the deal is proposed by Trump — such an asymmetric deal on topics that are not linked one to the other — I think we have to do the same.”

“Considering that the most asymmetric part is the relationship on the financial side, we have to start considering that maybe replying on the financial side could be a solution,” he said.

The U.S. is the biggest recipient of EU goods, accounting for nearly a fifth of the bloc’s exports. The U.S.’s biggest trade deficit with the EU is in machinery and vehicles, with the gap totalling 102 billion euros ($106 billion) in 2023. In energy, Washington had a trade surplus with the European bloc worth 70 billion euros.

The U.S. is the world’s top oil producer and accounted for 22% of global supply in 2023, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, which predicts record crude oil production in 2024. Producers anticipate even higher supply levels in a deregulatory environment under Trump.

The EU has already indicated it is expecting to purchase more U.S. energy in the coming years. Last month, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters that replacing Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports with U.S. volumes would be cheaper, and that the EU would look to engage and negotiate on the matter when Trump takes office in 2025.

Ahead of the U.S. election in November, EU officials spent months preparing for a lurch toward U.S. protectionism and for a more confrontational relationship with the White House, in the event of a Trump victory. The EU has also made moves toward strengthening its relationship with the U.K., which left the bloc in 2020, as a guard against potential clashes over trade and defense.

European stock markets were sharply lower on Friday morning, while the euro strengthened 0.2% against the U.S. dollar to $1.038.

CNBC has contacted the European Commission for comment on Trump’s remarks.

As Christmas and New Year’s approach, San Diego’s airport will be more crowded than ever, but the vast majority of Southern Californians heading out of town — a record 8.7 million — will be navigating congested freeways over a 12-day holiday period.

The good news, says the Automobile Club of Southern California, is that because the holidays fall midweek and they cover an extended time frame, traffic tie-ups shouldn’t be as severe as those of other holidays.

“Luckily this is a holiday where the travel period is more spread out so you’re not having as much of a risk of traffic jams that you would have on a three-day holiday,” said the Auto Club’s Marie Montgomery. “But of course anytime you’re heading to Vegas, you can expect to get caught up in a big backup so the earlier you leave for your trip the better off you’ll be.”

According to the Auto Club, nearly 10 million Southern California residents will travel 50 miles or more from home between Saturday and Jan. 1. That’s a 3.5% increase compared to last year and 6.8% higher than the pre-pandemic holiday season in 2019. Of those Southern California residents leaving home, 899,000 will be flying, the Auto Club said.

Working in motorists’ favor, Montgomery said, is that work commute times during the holiday period tend to be lighter, and of those expected to be driving, some will be headed out of town for New Year’s but not for Christmas, so the traffic volumes will be more dispersed.

Still, traffic delays will be inevitable, especially so on the weekends before Christmas Day and New Year’s. And the single worst day to travel? It’s this Sunday, according to INRIX, a provider of transportation data and insights that works with AAA on its forecasts.

“Our advice is to avoid traveling during peak commuting hours during the week. If schedules allow, leave bright and early or after the evening commute.” said Bob Pishue, transportation analyst at INRIX.

For the San Diego metro area, INRIX identified the single most congested route over the holiday period. It applies specifically to those heading to Palm Springs via Interstate 15 early Friday evening. Motorists can expect a driving time of 3 hours and 7 minutes, which is 35% longer than on a typical day, INRIX says.

The second worst traffic jam over the holidays is expected to be the return trip to San Diego from Palm Springs on the evening of Jan. 1, Montgomery said.

And best times to hit the road? AAA says traffic congestion should be minimal on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.

That also applies to those heading to the San Diego International Airport for their holiday getaways, said airport spokesperson Nicole Hall. Record numbers are expected as well for the airport, which calculates passenger counts over a slightly longer period — 18 days, starting Thursday and ending Jan. 5.

In all, airport officials are forecasting that as many as 1.3 million people will fly in and out of the airport over the 18 days. The busiest times at the airport are expected to be Friday through Monday; Dec. 26-29; and Jan. 2-5. During those specific travel periods, the airport anticipates as many as 80,000 people arriving and departing daily, Hall said.

The forecast easily eclipses passenger volumes during the same period in 2019 and represents a roughly 5% increase over the number of travelers a year ago.

Given the expected traffic delays and continued construction on Terminal 1, airport officials are offering the following tips:

• Make parking reservations in advance. Nearly 5,000 covered parking spaces are available at the airport’s Terminal 1 and 2 Parking Plazas. Parking and curbside valet reservations can be made on the airport’s website. Book now and save 20% with the promo code HOLIDAYS. The promotion is available for a limited time.
• Be prepared for potential delays on west and eastbound N. Harbor Drive due to potential slow-moving construction vehicles.
• Arrive early because of expected traffic congestion due to construction. Busiest times curbside are 4 a.m. to 6:15 a.m., 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and 8 p.m. to 12 a.m.
•  The airport operates a free electric shuttle known as the San Diego Flyer, which runs between the Old Town Transit Station and the airport. The buses operate seven days a week, with an average arrival time of every 20 to 30 minutes. The first pickup is at 4:45 a.m. and the last pickup/drop off is at 12:30 a.m.

In addition to holiday-related delays, there’s always the possibility flights could be delayed to unforeseen weather conditions. On Wednesday, close to 200 flights were delayed and 56 others were canceled, mostly due to heavy fog that arrived late afternoon.

Originally Published: December 19, 2024 at 5:25 PM PST