A Texas man was accused by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office on Friday of lying in wait before ambushing a Woodland Hills doctor and fatally shooting him in the head.
Evan Hardman, 41, of Tomball, Texas and Sarallah Jawed, 26, of Canoga Park were each charged with murder with special circumstances and accused of carrying out the fatal shooting of 61-year-old Dr. Hamid Mirshojae “for financial gain,” the office said in a statement.
They also face one count each of assault with a deadly weapon, officials said.
Hardman was identified as the shooter who ran up from behind Mirshojae as he was leaving his Woodland Hills medical clinic about 5:30 p.m., Aug. 23, and shooting him once in the head, the DA’s office said.
Prosecutors further alleged Hardman and Jawed assaulted Dr. Mirshojae with a blunt object, previously reported as baseball bats, three months prior to the fatal shooting.
Ashley Rose Sweeting, 40, of Reseda, was charged with being an accessory after the fact, officials said. She was accused of driving Hardman to and from the clinic the day of the shooting.
Los Angeles police say they plan to present a case against two others, including the doctor’s ex-wife, to the DA’s office Monday. All five were arrested this week, starting with Hardman and Sweeting, who were arrested Tuesday.
Jawed was accused of helping to facilitate the murder and driving Hardman out of the state a few days later, DA’s officials said.
Mirshojae’s ex-wife, 53-year-old Ahang Mirshojae, was arrested Thursday in connection with the crime, as was Shawn Randolph, 46, of Valley Village.
Hardman, Jawed, Mirshojae and Randolph were being held in jail on no bail, according to Los Angeles police. Prosecutors planned to request that Sweeting be held on $1 million bail. She pleaded not guilty to the accessory charge Thursday.
The department said all five suspects conspired to commit murder, “culminating in the ambush and subsequent demise of Doctor Mirshojae.” Detectives said the investigation is ongoing, including determining the relationships some of the involved suspects may have had with the victim.
“This tragic event underscores the devastating impact of violent crime on our community,” District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement. “I want to make it clear: These crimes will not be tolerated.”