| For Immediate Release Case # 11CF1563 April 26, 2013 |
Susan Kang Schroeder Chief of Staff Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami
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MAN FACES TRIAL FOR STABBING-MURDER OF TWO MEN IN LAKE FOREST PARKING LOT FIGHT
SANTA ANA – A man faces trial Monday for murdering two men by stabbing both victims during a fight in a Lake Forest parking lot. The first victim died shortly after the attack and the second died six days later in the hospital. Justin Alvin Masao Tombleson, 30, Lake Forest, is charged with two felony counts of murder and sentencing enhancements for the personal use of a deadly weapon. If convicted, Tombleson faces a maximum sentence of 67 years to life in state prison. Opening statements are expected to begin Monday, April 29, 2013, at 9:00 a.m. in Department C-35, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.
At approximately 2:00 a.m. on June 11, 2011, 26-year-old Elvis Kechechian was at a Mexican restaurant in Lake Forest with 32-year-old friend Hossein Saidian, Kechechian’s brother, and another friend.
Kechechian and his brother became involved in a verbal altercation. During this argument, Kechechian’s brother spit on a woman. The argument escalated between the Kechechian’s friends and the woman’s friends, and they were subsequently asked by the owner to leave the restaurant. The woman called her boyfriend, Tombleson, who was already on his way to the restaurant.
Upon arriving, Tombleson is accused of attempting to assault the victims in the parking lot near the victims’ car. A physical fight broke out between the defendant and victims. When Tombleson’s friends arrive to join the altercation, Tombleson is accused of pulling a knife from his pocket.
Tombleson is accused of stabbing Kechechian one time in the abdomen, perforating his aorta. He is accused of stabbing Saidian in the chest and arm. Both victims were transported to the hospital and Kechechian was pronounced dead shortly after his arrival. Saidian remained in critical condition until June 16, 2011, when he died in the hospital.
The defendant is accused of fleeing the scene with his friends. The Orange County Sheriff’s Department responded to the scene and investigated this case. A knife was located near the crime scene. Tombleson is accused of being linked to the knife through DNA. Both victims’ DNA was also identified on the knife.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Steve McGreevy of the Homicide Unit is prosecuting this case.
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