A homeless California man convicted of brutally murdering a UCLA graduate student inside a boutique furniture store was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison without parole.
Sean LaValle Smith, 34, was found guilty in September of the gruesome murder of 24-year-old architecture graduate student Brianna Kupfer on January 13, 2022.
The sentence was handed down after Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mildred Escobedo reviewed doctors' reports and determined Smith was sane at the time of the murder. FOX11 Los Angeles reported.
Kupfer was working alone at the Croft House in Los Angeles' Hancock Park neighborhood when Smith, a homeless man with a long criminal history, broke into the store and stabbed Kupfer 26 times in an unprovoked attack.
Who is Los Angeles stabbing victim Brianna Kufer?
Sean LaValle Smith, 34, was found guilty of murdering Brianna Kupfer, 24, who was stabbed multiple times in 2022 while she was working alone at a furniture store in Los Angeles. (KTTV/LinkedIn)
Kupfer suffered 11 stab wounds to the chest, two to the abdomen, one to the pelvis, two to the right arm, five to the left arm, two to the right leg, and three to the left leg. Prosecutors said security cameras showed Smith in the store and his DNA was found on the knife.
Smith was arrested six days after Kupfer's murder.
Brianna Kupfer was working at Croft House, a high-end furniture store in Los Angeles, when she was stabbed to death. (Todd Kupfer)
During the trial, prosecutors argued that Smith was “alone looking for women” on the day of the murder and approached six other stores before finding Kupper working alone.
Authorities said that shortly before Kupfer died, he sent a text message to a friend saying he was getting a “bad vibe” from someone inside the store.
The 24-year-old was a graduate student studying design at UCLA. (Todd Kupfer)
Brianna Kuffer sends creepy email to Pal before being stabbed to death
A friend said he saw the message about 15 minutes later, but police said Kupfer was killed within 10 minutes of sending it. A customer found Kupfer dead inside the store.
Kupfer's family remembered the 24-year-old as someone who always strived to better himself and his community.
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“In many ways, [Brianna] “Brianna epitomized everything that is great about Los Angeles, and the entire city should mourn this foolish act,” the family said in a previous statement, adding, “Brianna was smart, funny, driven, and a self-centered person. “He was a kind soul who just wanted to better himself.” We build communities on a daily basis. ”
Fox News' Louis Casiano, Brie Stimson and Lawrence Richard contributed to this report.
