RANCHO SANTA FE, Calif. - A friend of the man who owned the upscale Rancho Santa Fe home where the bodies of two adult women and a teenage girl were found Monday told 10News there was a tragedy at the same home less than two months ago.
Deputies responding to a report of possible child abuse at the upscale house in the 17100 block of Via de la Valle found the bodies of the two women, who were both around 40, and a roughly 15-year-old girl shortly before noon Monday, according to San Diego County Sheriff's Lt. Kenneth Nelson. None of their names have been made public, nor how they died.
James Zolan used to own the home and sold it to real estate broker Michael Arya in 2014.
"Needless to say, it was my house, where it was happening, my previous home," Zolan said.
Zolan said he and Arya became friends.
"Mike and I spoke often," Zolan said.
According to Zolan, Arya resided in the home with his girlfriend.
"A girlfriend, Marina. She was of Russian descent and she took good care of him when he was very ill," Zolan said.
Arya was recently diagnosed with lung cancer, Zolan explained.
"He had lung cancer. He had been in and out of the hospital many times and he passed away about a month-and-a-half ago."
Zolan said he saw Marina at Arya's memorial service. He said Marina was upset she had to move out of the house and had nowhere to go.
"She said she was probably going back to Russia. And I said give us a call, come on over and let's talk but she never did call and I don't know if she went back to Russia or not."
Zolan is unsure who was living in the home when the bodies were found Monday.
"I just feel very sorry for his (Arya's) family," Zolan said.
Two vehicles remained parked in the driveway Tuesday. One is a Ford Flex registered to Sayeh Amini. The second is a Mercedes registered to a Beverly Hills real estate broker named Mia Shin.
According to the San Diego County Assessor's Office, the home is currently owned by the Michael Arya Revocable Living Trust. It was unclear who Arya named as the benefactor of the home.
