A self-proclaimed heiress to an Armenian cracker-bread company fortune pleaded not guilty Thursday to a murder charge stemming from the death of a man allegedly attacked by her boyfriend at her Glendale apartment last week.
Sparkle Soojian, 32, is charged along with Jared Braden Kasiewicz, who prosecutors allege beat and choked 31-year-old John Michael King-Smith.
Courtney Argue, 25, is charged with a felony count of being an accessory after the fact. The aspiring pop singer works for a company Soojian owns that provides women to serve shots and socialize with guests at parties and other events, according to media reports.
Glendale police received a call just before 2 a.m. last Thursday about a disturbance at an apartment in the 200 block of West Windsor Road.
Soojian was home when officers arrived and found King-Smith in a “state of medical distress,” according to Glendale police. He was pronounced dead soon after being taken to a hospital.
Soojian’s attorney, Daniel Behesnilian, told the Glendale News-Press that she was “in fear for her life” when King-Smith showed up at her apartment, prompting her to call friends for help. She is “absolutely convinced of her innocence,” her attorney said.
Police indicated that Soojian and the victim knew each other, but did not elaborate.
According to the website for Soojian’s company, called Soojian’s Sparkles, her great-grandparents founded the Ak Mak cracker company whose product is sold internationally, including at Trader Joe’s stores.
She is jailed on $1.025 million bail — is due back in a Pasadena courtroom next Thursday for a bail review hearing.
Kasiewicz, 28, is being held in lieu of $1 million bail, and Argue is free on bond. The two pleaded not guilty and are due back in court Oct. 5.
If convicted, Soojian and Kasiewicz each face up to 25 years to life in state prison, while Argue could face up to three years behind bars, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
— City News Service