Man guilty of fatally stabbing ex with scissors, killing her dog and setting apartment ablaze
An Inglewood man has been found guilty of killing a woman whom he briefly dated, then killing her dog and setting fire to her Pomona apartment in 2019.
Chaumon Wayan Tyner, 53, was found guilty of one count each of first-degree murder with the use of scissors as the murder weapon, cruelty to an animal and arson of an inhabited structure, the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office said Monday.
Ronnie Sue Wall, 58, was killed March 16, 2019. Authorities discovered her body two days later after L.A. County firefighters went to her home on Bonita Avenue around 6 a.m. to investigate a fire alarm.
Inside, they found Wall’s remains along with her slain Yorkshire terrier, Bentley, prosecutors said.
Medical examiners found that Wall, who lived on the third floor of a gated senior living community, had been stabbed and physically assaulted.
Carlos Diaz, 23, was arrested after a fire destroyed Victory Baptist Church and injured three firefighters, authorities said.
A fire was started inside the apartment, which set off the alarm.
Prosecutors said on Monday that Tyner briefly dated Wall.
He allegedly ransacked the apartment after killing her and the dog, then started the fire and fled in her car, prosecutors said. The apartment’s sprinkler system extinguished the fire.
“The murder of an innocent victim is a senseless tragedy,” Dist. Atty. George Gascón said. “It leads to heartache and lasting pain for the victims’ friends, family and community. The defendant’s actions in this case were brutal and depraved.”
Tyner’s sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 27 in L.A. County Superior Court, Pomona Branch.
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