A Bay Area husband accused of brutally killing his wife and mother-in-law at their home while his young twin daughters were nearby is now facing a third murder charge for a deadly shooting in the Los Angeles area — as his mistress has links to all three slayings.
Howard Wang, 43, was charged in the September 2025 killings of his wife, Linlin Guo, 37, and her mother, Beimin Cheng, who were found were their throats slashed inside the couple’s Walnut Creek home.
Wang’s alleged lover, Yan Wang, 45, was charged as an accomplice over accusations she helped destroy evidence and misled investigators after the killings.
Now, prosecutors in Contra Costa County have charged Wang with the killing of his mistress’s boyfriend in Southern California a year earlier.
Wang and and another man planned the murder and traveled together from the Bay Area to San Gabriel, where 41-year-old Chengli Li was fatally shot in June 2024, authorities said.Authorities said Wang arranged the killing and was present when the victim was gunned down outside his residence.
The suspected gunman, Demarques James Pearl, 33, has also been charged with murder.
Prosecutors say the killing was driven by Wang’s relationship with his mistress and was meant to clear the way for their relationship.
Authorities said the grisly murders in Walnut Creek came after a troubled marriage marked by alleged threats and controlling behavior.Prosecutors claim Wang made criminal threats against his wife and tried to stop her from reporting abuse.When police entered the home, they found Guo and her mother fatally stabbed in what investigators have described as a targeted attack.After the killings, authorities say Wang told police an intruder was responsible, a claim investigators believe was an attempt to deflect suspicion.
Wang was later arrested and remains in custody.Prosecutors say all three killings across Contra Costa and Los Angeles counties are expected to be prosecuted together. Pearl was scheduled to be arraigned on April 1 and Wang on April 14.The case has also drawn attention to the couple’s 8-year-old twin daughters, who survived the attack but lost their mother.A GoFundMe campaign created to support them was later paused after raising a very small amount.
