Slaying Not Random, Officer Asserts

The two masked men who broke into a Lancaster home and killed a 35-year-old man early Tuesday did not choose their target randomly and may not have been motivated by robbery, as detectives first assumed, a Los Angeles County sheriff’s investigator said Wednesday.

Sheriff’s officials originally said the slaying of Jonathan Knight appeared to have been part of a home-invasion robbery. While the intruders ransacked the house and rifled through drawers, it was unclear whether anything had been stolen, said sheriff’s homicide Lt. Larry Lincoln, who is heading the investigation.

“We don’t know exactly why they broke into the house and for what purpose,” he said.

Lincoln said the choice of victim was “not random,” but he would not elaborate nor say whether the slaying had been connected to Knight’s pending drug trial.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Tannaz Mokayef said Knight had been awaiting a preliminary hearing on charges of manufacturing cocaine and possession of cocaine with the intent to sell.

Authorities allegedly discovered Knight and another man, Shadrick Grant, with the drugs in Lancaster on July 30.

Like Knight, Grant, 36, pleaded not guilty to cocaine possession and manufacturing. While Grant remained in custody, Knight was out on bail, Mokayef said.

Knight’s attorney, Howard Beckler, said he was unaware of any threats directed at his client, who owned a carpet-cleaning business.

“It was a routine bust and a routine trial,” Beckler said.

The family was sleeping about 4 a.m. Tuesday in the modest stucco house in the 500 block of East Lingard Street when two men broke down the door. Knight’s girlfriend and the children, who were unharmed, ran to a nearby residence and called police, Lincoln said.

The two men remain at large. Because of the ski masks, sheriff’s officials have been unable to provide descriptions. Anyone with information is asked to call the Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500.

The family moved to the neighborhood just before Christmas. Some residents said they remained fearful for their safety.

“Why did they pick that house?” asked neighbor Aida Veron, 40. “There’s just so many questions that people are asking.”