NYTimes | The police on Thursday announced that they had arrested a suspect in the fatal shooting of Jacqueline Avant, a philanthropist and the wife of the music producer Clarence Avant, one day after she was killed at her home in Beverly Hills, Calif.
About an hour after Ms. Avant, 81, was killed, the suspect, Aariel Maynor, 29, of Los Angeles, was arrested when he accidentally shot himself in the foot while burglarizing a home in Hollywood, about 7 miles from Ms. Avant’s home, Chief Mark Stainbrook of the Beverly Hills Police Department said at a news conference on Thursday.
The police found Mr. Maynor in the backyard of the home in Hollywood after they received a report of a shooting there at 3:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Chief Stainbrook said, adding that they also recovered the rifle Mr. Maynor is believed to have used to shoot Ms. Avant. Mr. Maynor was taken to a hospital, where he remains in custody.
Ms. Avant was found with a gunshot wound after the police received a report of a shooting at her home in Beverly Hills at 2:23 a.m. on Wednesday. Mr. Avant and a private security guard were at the home at the time of the shooting, but were unharmed, the police said.
Surveillance videos, including city cameras, showed Mr. Maynor’s vehicle heading eastbound out of Beverly Hills shortly after Ms. Avant was shot, Chief Stainbrook said.
The evidence indicates that Mr. Maynor acted alone in the shooting, and his motive remains under investigation, Chief Stainbrook said. Mr. Maynor has “an extensive criminal record” and was on parole, Chief Stainbrook said.
“Our deepest gratitude to The City of Beverly Hills, the B.H.P.D. and all law enforcement for their diligence on this matter,” Ms. Avant’s family said in a statement on Thursday after the police announced the arrest. “Now, let justice be served.”
The fatal shooting of Ms. Avant prompted an outpouring of grief and condolences from prominent figures in the arts, sports and politics, including former President Bill Clinton, former Vice President Al Gore and the former Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson.
A onetime model who was married to Mr. Avant for more than 50 years, Ms. Avant was a past president of the Neighbors of Watts, a charitable organization that threw star-studded benefits to support child care and other needs. She was also an elementary school tutor and an avid collector of Japanese lacquered boxes.
Mr. Avant started Sussex Records in 1969 and signed Bill Withers, releasing some of his best-known songs, including “Ain’t No Sunshine,” “Use Me” and “Lean on Me.” Over the years, he also worked with Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis and Babyface. He helped promote Michael Jackson’s “Bad” world tour in 1987, and was chairman of the board of Motown Records.
Mr. Avant was the subject of a 2019 Netflix documentary, “The Black Godfather,” which featured testimonials from Mr. Clinton, former President Barack Obama and Vice President Kamala Harris, who was then a presidential candidate.
The couple’s daughter, Nicole A. Avant, a former U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas, was a producer of “The Black Godfather,” and is married to Ted Sarandos, a co-chief executive of Netflix.
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