A man arrested in a murder-for-hire plot to strangle a 96-year-old woman and steal her $5 million Montecito mansion pleaded not guilty Thursday.
Henry Rostomyan, 33, appeared in Santa Barbara Superior Court today after being charged last week in connection with the murder of Violet Evelyn Alberts.
Appearing before Judge Thomas Adams, Rostomyan entered a not guilty plea. Adams subsequently ordered him back to jail without bail, citing him as a danger to the public.
Alberts was found dead in his bed by a caretaker in May 2022, with a window in his home broken. She had made cookies for her birthday moments before she was killed.
Nearly two years after the death, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrests of Rostomyan, Harry Basmadjian, 58, Ricardo MartinDelCampo, 41, and Pauline Macareno, 48.
Henry Rostomyan, 33, arrested in a murder-for-hire plot to strangle a 96-year-old woman and steal her $5 million Montecito mansion pleaded not guilty Thursday
Rostomyan, 33, appeared in Santa Barbara Superior Court today after being charged last week in connection with the murder of Violet Evelyn Alberts
Alberts, 96, was found dead in his bed by a caretaker in May 2022, with a window in his home broken.
Alberts had made cookies for her birthday moments before she was killed in her $5 million home (pictured)
Rostomyan appears stressed, dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit, as he covers his face and lowers his head in exclusive pictures obtained by DailyMail.com.
He can be seen smiling in one of the photos before being escorted back to prison. The other three suspects did not appear.
Officials said last week that Alberts’ killing was a murder-for-hire scheme orchestrated by Macareno, who had previously tried to lure Alberts out of his home.
“In Pauline Macareno’s eyes, Miss Alberts lived too long,” Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown said. ‘The acceleration of her death is probably what was behind the murder.’
Brown said in 2020 that the 48-year-old woman was “referred” to Alberts, who needed additional money after she “ran out” of her savings.
‘The victim was in a economic hardship situation where she was basically aged out of her savings and she basically had a very valuable home that she was living in, but otherwise she was out of money,’ Brown said.
‘She needed some extra money and was contacted by Pauline Macareno with the scheme to sell her a reverse mortgage.’
Macareno had attempted to gain control of Albert’s assets by posing as a real estate agent, forging documents and using fraudulent devices.
She was convicted of using a real estate scheme to convince Alberts to transfer title to her home to herself and is currently serving a six-year sentence in state prison.
Rostomyan appears stressed, dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit, as he covers his face and lowers his head in exclusive pictures obtained by DailyMail.com
He can be seen smiling in one of the photos before being escorted back to prison. The other three suspects did not appear
Nearly two years after the death, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrests of Rostomyan, Harry Basmadjian (right), 58, Ricardo MartinDelCampo, 41, and Pauline Macareno, 48 (left)
Basmadjian was arrested in January in connection with Albert’s death while he was being held in federal custody on an unrelated charge.
He subsequently suffered a life-threatening medical emergency that left him totally incapacitated with a grim prognosis, according to the sheriff’s office.
In the immediate aftermath of Alberts’ death two years ago, detectives found little or no leads – but soon after they began to trace a ‘tangled web of financial exploitation’.
This led detectives to Macareno and three men.
During the investigation, they discovered that MartinDelCampo and Rostomyan had made a scouting trip to Albert’s home on May 24, 2022.
“This crucial discovery shed light on the premeditated nature of the crime and underscored the perpetrators’ calculated efforts to investigate Albert’s home and plan their vicious and reprehensible acts,” Brown said.
In June, the sheriff’s office released photos of a white Porsche Cayenne they believed was connected to Albert’s murder.
Police said they believed the driver had traveled from Los Angeles to Montecito the night after the murder, and the vehicle was seen entering and leaving Albert’s property.
Macareno is currently jailed on a separate charge, Basmadjian was arrested on January 2, Rostomyan was arrested on February 27, and MartinDelCampo was arrested on March 5, 2024.
The sheriff said Alberts was making cookies for her birthday moments before she died, and the ingredients for those cookies were found on the table when police arrived.
Appearing before Judge Thomas Adams (pictured), Rostomyan entered a not guilty plea. Adams subsequently ordered him back to jail without bail, citing him as a danger to the public
In June, the sheriff’s office released photos of a white Porsche Cayenne they believed was connected to Albert’s murder
Police said they believed the driver had traveled from Los Angeles to Montecito the night of the murder and that the vehicle was seen entering and leaving Albert’s property
Brown said Alberts was a “lively 96-year-old widow” and a “beloved figure” in the community.
“Violet relied on her friendships and connections in the neighborhood, through which she gained a sense of belonging in a tight-knit community,” Brown said.
“Her love of her home, complete with a pond filled with beloved koi fish that she brought from Beverly Hills, reflected her appreciation of life’s simpler pleasures,” the sheriff said.
“Despite challenges to her memory and cognition, Violet’s spirit remained undaunted.”
Montecito, an opulent enclave outside of Santa Barbara, is home to some of the world’s most famous and wealthy people—including the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Oprah, and Ellen DeGeneres.