Death Penalty a Possibility in Killing at Deli

A Pasadena man accused of killing a securities broker outside a Northridge delicatessen was hired to commit the murder and, as a result, could face the death penalty, a prosecutor said Wednesday.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Robert Dver amended the first-degree murder charge against Marva DeCarlo Johnson, 29, to include a special allegation that the killing was done for financial gain.

Johnson, a computer technician, is accused of fatally shooting John J. Collette, 29, of Agoura Hills on Oct. 28, 1991, about 1:30 p.m. outside Brent’s Delicatessen & Restaurant in the 19500 block of Parthenia Avenue. Collette was shot in the head at point-blank range after a short conversation with a man.

“It is our belief that Johnson was hired by someone to kill Mr. Collette for a substantial sum of money,” Dver said.

Dver, however, would not say how much money Johnson is believed to have been paid, or by whom.

Johnson’s attorney, Joel Goldberg, said he was still studying the amended charge, but that his initial impression was that the special allegation only was “supported by speculation.”

A preliminary hearing, scheduled for Wednesday in San Fernando Municipal Court, was continued to Feb. 26 after the charge was upgraded. Without the special allegation, Johnson faced a maximum of 25 years to life with the possibility of parole.

The special allegation allows the prosecutor to seek the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole. Dver said he has not yet decided which term he will seek.

Collette, at the time of the shooting, was under investigation by the state Department of Corporations for allegedly helping to defraud as many as 8,000 investors nationwide of an estimated $140 million by selling partnerships in oil and gas ventures over the last five years.

He was among six defendants in a pending civil suit filed by the state. Collette was a salesman for Los Angeles-based Parker-Bryant Inc., which state officials allege sold interests in partnerships, then kept most of the money as management and consulting fees.

Police are investigating whether the shooting was connected to the fraud case or the result of a separate business deal that may have soured.

A second man who allegedly drove a getaway car for Johnson is still being sought by police.

Times staff writer Leslie Berger contributed to this story.