ROSEMEAD >> A jury convicted a man of fatally stabbing his then-14-year-old girlfriend’s grandparents more than 150 times in their Rosemead home six years ago.
A Los Angeles Superior Court jury deliberated for two days before convicting Rodolfo Lopez of two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the Aug. 9, 2010, slayings of Jack Bezner, 71, and Susan Bezner, 64, at their home in the 4200 block of Arica Avenue, according to Los Angeles County District Attorneys’ officials.
His former girlfriend, 20-year-old Sophia Cristo, was convicted in March of 2015 of two counts of first-degree murder, prosecutors said. Jurors also found true the special circumstances of lying in wait and multiple murders, along with the special allegation that she personally used a knife to stab her grandmother, who was wounded 112 times.
Both Jack and Susan Bezner were attacked as they slept in bed, officials said. Evidence indicated they fought for their lives, Deputy District Attorney Scott McPheron told jurors during Cristo’s trial.
Cristo lived with her grandparent prior the brutal slayings, officials said. It was alleged Cristo orchestrated the killings over a dispute with her grandparents.
“The prosecutor argued in his closing that Cristo had been involved in a check forgery scam,” district attorney’s office spokeswoman Sarah Ardalani said.
“The grandparents found out. They threatened to put her in juvenile hall,” Ardalani said. Cristo then allegedly decided to kill them.
Cristo and Lopez are both expected to receive life prison terms, without the possibility of parole, when they return to court for sentencing on Jan. 24, Ardalani said.
Cristo was not eligible for the death penalty because she was a juvenile at the time of the crimes, though she was charged as an adult. Prosecutors did not seek the death penalty against Lopez, who was 21 at the time of the double murder, Ardalani said.
Prosecutors argued that Lopez personally wielded the knife in Jack Bezner’s slaying, however jurors did not find that allegation to be true, Ardalani said.
Police apprehended Lopez and Cristo two days after the murders, according to El Paso Sheriff’s Department Deputy Jesse Tovar.
Authorities used a LoJack vehicle anti-theft system to track the suspects down as they drove through Horison City, Texas, in the Bezners’ SUV.