arturo torres | photographer: Archive

The man believed responsible for killing his wife and five children in Wilmington had been fired from his hospital job along with his wife for forging a supervisor’s signature on a child-care application, according to Kaiser Permanente officials.

Diana Bonta, vice president for public affairs at Kaiser Permanente, said the couple falsified income records so they could qualify for a child-care program run by Crystal Stairs, a nonprofit children’s services agency located near the West Los Angeles medical center where they worked.

“They were terminated because in the healthcare field, records are an important part of the process, and people trust us with their health,” she said.

Several police sources familiar with the investigation told The Times that Ervin and Ana Lupoe made more than $40 an hour each in their work as radiological technicians for the hospital.

But the couple made it appear that they were earning $7 to $10 an hour, according to the sources, who spoke on the condition that they not be named because the investigation was ongoing.

The disparity was discovered when the child-care agency called Kaiser to inquire about the couple’s income. Bonta would only say that Kaiser launched its investigation in December after being tipped to alleged fraud.

— Andrew Blankstein and Richard Winton

Photo credit: KTLA

Play

Play

“a world of pixels…” —is what i see