Los Angeles police have arrested a 29-year-old male in connection with the murder of Jacqueline Avant, the wife of legendary music industry boss Clarence Avant.
Avant, 81, was shot dead on Wednesday in an attempted burglary at the couple’s home in an affluent neighbourhood overlooking the Hollywood hill in Beverly Hills.
In a statement Beverly Hills Police said on Thursday that Aariel Maynor, who has an extensive criminal history, was arrested at 3.30am on Thursday.
The arrest was made when Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Hollywood division responded to a reported shooting at a house in the 6000 block of Graciosa Drive.
Police said when they arrived, they found Mr Maynor with a self-inflicted gunshot wound on his foot. Investigation revealed that there had been a burglary at the house and Mr Maynor had accidentally shot himself.
Images released from the time of arrest shows a handcuffed Mr Maynor showing his bloodied foot as he is taken away by police in a wheelchair.
In response to detectives at Hollywood division, Beverly Hills police collected evidence that allegedly connected him to Avant’s shooting.
It was an “astute watch commander at Hollywood that, starting to put two and two together, and reached out to Beverly Hills,” said Blake Chow, LAPD Deputy Chief to Los Angeles CBS Local.
Mr Maynor was named as a suspect in the Avant shooting case after he was identified through several surveillance videos that showed him driving around after Avant’s shooting.
Police said that an AR-15 style weapon was found on him which also tied him to Avant’s shooting.
“At this time, we’re only looking at him as a suspect, but again, there’s a lot of evidence to go through, so we’re leaving open the possibility there could be other people involved,” said Mr Stainbrook.
Police said that Mr Maynor was most recently released on parole on 1 September after serving four years for second-degree robbery.
He has previously been jailed for a separate robbery conviction and grand theft. He will be taken to jail after he clears a medical examination at a Los Angeles hospital.
Avant was a former model and a philanthropist. Her husband Clarence, a longtime artist manager and record producer is often regarded as “the godfather of Black music”, for his role in fostering numerous black musicians.
