A capital murder charge was filed Tuesday against a businessman who allegedly ambushed a woman in a Hollywood sidewalk attack precipitated by a financial dispute over social media promotion work she did for him.
Ezeoma Chigozie Obioha, 31, is accused of shooting 30-year-old Carrie Melvin about 10 p.m. July 5 while she was walking with her boyfriend near the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and McCadden Place.
The murder charge includes the special circumstance allegations of lying in wait and murder for financial gain, along with an allegation that he personally and intentionally discharged a shotgun. Prosecutors will decide later whether to seek the death penalty against Obioha.
Obioha appeared in court in downtown Los Angeles and pleaded not guilty to the murder charge. He was ordered to remain jailed without bail and will be back in court Aug. 31, when a date will be set for a hearing to determine if there is enough evidence for him to stand trial.
Obioha was booked on suspicion of murder on Friday night, police said, although he was already in custody on an unrelated matter.
His attorney, Jovan Blacknell, said he was concerned about the “negative” public perception that has developed of his client.
“The family is just concerned that the conversation so far has been very negative about Mr. Obioha, and the image that has been put forth so far has been very negative, and that’s not who he is,” Blacknell told reporters outside court.
Melvin’s killer walked up behind the couple, felled her with a single shotgun round, then walked to a parked car and drove away.
Investigators were initially unsure if the attack was a random act of violence or a targeted killing.
Detectives said Obioha was involved in a financial dispute with Melvin over a check he apparently wrote to her, but bounced. Police told the Los Angeles Times that Melvin had a social media company and had agreed to market Obioha’s “hoodfellas” clothing, but she threatened to take him to court to collect the several hundred dollars from the bounced check.
Obioha, who The Times reported was a one-time security guard for a medical marijuana dispensary, was arrested by LAPD Hollywood Division officers Friday morning on suspicion of possession of marijuana for sale.
Obioha had attended Beverly Hills High School, where he played on the boys’ basketball team and wrote for the newspaper LA Youth.
—City News Service