After ex-wife's arrest, three others face charges in Woodland Hills doctor's killing
Following the arrest of a slain Woodland Hills doctor's ex-wife, prosecutors announced criminal charges Friday against three other people tied to the killing police have described as an ambush-style, targeted hit.
On the evening of Aug. 23, Dr. Hamid Mirshojae was leaving his medical clinic along Topanga Canyon Boulevard, walking to his car when he was gunned down by a masked man, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The shooter had been hiding around a corner of the clinic and ran toward Mirshojae just before opening fire — shooting him at close range, police said.
Ahang Mirshojae, 53, was divorced from the physician in 2010, public records show. She has been arrested along with four other people on suspicion of conspiring to kill her ex-husband, according to LAPD.
On Friday, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced criminal charges against three individuals: Evan Hardman, 41, Sarallah Jawed, 26 and Ashley Rose Sweeting, 40. Hardman, the suspected shooter, and Jawed allegedly assaulted the doctor months before the deadly shooting and killed him for financial gain, according to prosecutors.
The two men have both been charged with murder and assault with a deadly weapon, according to prosecutors.
Jawed allegedly facilitated the killing and drove Hardman out of state a few days later — before Hardman was arrested in Texas earlier this week. He is currently awaiting extradition, prosecutors said.
"It is further alleged that the murder of Dr. Mirshojae was intentional and was carried out by Hardman and Jawed for financial gain," reads the DA's office statement announcing the charges.
Prosecutors allege Sweeting drove Hardman to and from the scene of the deadly shooting and have charged her with accessory after the fact. She pleaded not guilty during a Thursday court hearing.
Jawed was scheduled to be arraigned in court Friday while a preliminary hearing in the case has been set for Dec. 24.
Prosecutors have not announced charges against the slain doctor's ex-wife or a final suspect, Shawn Randolph, 46. However, LAPD said Thursday that the case for charges against them has been presented to the DA's office for consideration.
It remains unclear how all the individuals arrested in the investigation know each other.
In the days following Dr. Mirshojae's death, friends and former patients placed candles and flowers just outside the urgent care clinic where he worked, describing him as a dedicated physician.
"He was the sweetest guy ever," said one former patient, Pania Mazaheri. "He would be there for you. He would do anything for you. Like whenever you needed something, he would always like be on his feet for you."
Meanwhile, LAPD officials pleaded for the public's help finding his killer.
When suspicions surfaced around her, the doctor's ex-wife told the Los Angeles Times in an August interview: "It's all lies."
"These are civil matters and have nothing to do with his personality or who he is," Ahang Mirshojae said of a series of court filings detailing a long and bitter legal battle. "He's a kind man. He had started a new life and was very happy."
Within the court filings dating back to the former couple's finalization of their divorce in 2010, records show they were most recently in court earlier this year, when a judge denied her request for adult child support for their son in April.
While prosecutors allege Hardman and Jawed took part in the killing for financial gain, authorities have not identified a possible motive for Dr. Mirshojae's ex-wife and the other two people arrested in connection with his death.
Prosecutors are requesting Hardman and Jawed be held without bail while Sweeting be held on $1 million bail.
