In a bizarre twist to a grisly crime on a popular hiking trail in the San Gabriel Mountains where a 19-year-old man reportedly stabbed his father to death, the victim has been identified as a well-known, award-winning war photographer, photojournalist and professor at University of the Arts London.
On Oct. 12, deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department were dispatched to the area around Mt. Baldy Road near Stoddard Canyon Falls just before 3:30 p.m. where they discovered a man suffering from severe “trauma to his upper torso,” LASD officials said in a news release.
The victim, now identified by friends as 61-year-old Paul Lowe, was declared dead at the scene.
Investigators soon learned that another man was seen driving away from the area at high speeds and ultimately crashed his car just a few miles down the road.
Authorities initially detained the 19-year-old, now identified as Emir Lowe, according to LASD booking records, before arresting him on suspicion of murder.
According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner, the 61-year-old’s cause of death was a stab wound to the neck.
Now, friends of the beloved professor and renowned photojournalist, who covered the terrors of the Bosnian war and split his time between London and Sarajevo, are remembering him as a mentor and friend to many.
Lara Jo Regan, a colleague of Lowe’s and a fellow photojournalist, told KTLA’s Rachel Menitoff that she first met him at the World Press Photo of the Year exhibition 24 years ago.
“We had some great, interesting, stimulating and inspiring conversations about photography,” she recalled. “I just think it’s the effect he had on many people, both students and colleagues. He had a real generosity of spirit.”
Regan said Lowe told her he was in Southern California to manage some family matters. They had planned to meet up, but after several days went by, she hadn’t heard from him.
“I went on Facebook, and I was going to DM him to see what was up,” she explained. “Then, the first thing that came up was news of his passing posted on his agency’s website in New York. I was beyond shocked. I’m still kind of shocked.”
Condolences and tributes have been pouring from others as people learn of the fateful news.
“Paul was a courageous beloved comrade, and a deeply devoted father and husband,” the VII Foundation, a nonprofit devoted to visual journalism, said in a post to Instagram. “The loss is shocking and overwhelming, and our hearts go out to his wife and family.”
Fellow artist and curator Elton Koritari wrote on Instagram about the privilege of working with Lowe and curating his last exhibition in Tirana, Albania.
“Now, it’s a huge responsibility to still have in a show with ‘The Siege of Sarajevo,’ to carry on his work as a humanist, as a committed witness to history.”
As for Regan, she believes his legacy will live on in his work.
“I just want him to know that his spirit will live on through those pictures and many others that he’s taken,” she said.
Lowe’s son, Emir, is scheduled to appear in a West Covina courtroom Tuesday.
KTLA has reached out to authorities about a possible motive in the killing and is awaiting a response.
