The wife of music icon Clarence Avant's wife, Jacqueline Avant was murdered in the couple's Beverly Hills home invasion on Wednesday, December 1. According to police, a suspect in connection with the killing was arrested just an hour later after he shot himself in the foot during a separate burglary in Hollywood Hills.
According to LAPD Deputy Chief Blake Chow, the suspect, identified as Aariel Maynor, 29, was arrested in connection with Avant's murder after a watch commander in Hollywood joined the dots between the two incidents. Maynor was announced a suspect in Avant's murder on Thursday, December 2 afternoon. According to police, Clarence and a security guard were present at the scene during the incident but were unharmed.
Clarence Avant's wife of 54 years, Jacqueline Avant, 81, was shot and killed in a brutal home invasion. According to DailyMail, police have reason to believe that Maynor shot himself with the same AR-15 rifle he used to kill Avant. The connection between the two incidents was further tied after reviewing surveillance footage of the vehicle. A footage showed Maynor handcuffed to a wheelchair with a bloody foot being taken into custody by the police. He is currently in LAPD custody at a local hospital.
Criminal history
Police noted that Maynor is the only suspect so far and they have not determined a motive for Avant's murder yet. Maynor will be booked after being cleared from the hospital. The suspect, Aariel Maynor, has a vast criminal history including convictions for assault, robbery, and grand theft. He was released on parole earlier this year in September after serving four years for second-degree robbery with enhancements for a prior felony.
A California Department of Corrections spokesperson noted that Maynor was sentenced to 5 years in prison for second-degree robbery and inflicting great bodily injury in November 2013. According to Maynor's Facebook page, he studied at Hartnell College in Salinas and had started a new job as an electrician in October.
'An astute watch commander put two and two together'
Officers responded to a second 911 call of shooting around 3.30 am in the 6000 block of Graciosa Drive in the Hollywood Hills, a place 7 miles east of Beverly Hills. Officers found Maynor in the backyard of a home having accidentally shot himself in the foot in an attempted burglary. Deputy Chief Chow said during a Thursday press conference that an astute watch commander in Hollywood 'put two and two together' between the two incidents.
