Killing Spree Suspect Allegedly Funded Crimes With $700K Settlement From LA Police

Jerrid Powell, the suspect accused of randomly killing four individuals on Nov. 27, is alleged to have funded his criminal activities with a $700,000 settlement from Santa Monica.

Authorities in Central LA have disclosed that Jerrid Powell, the suspect accused of randomly gunning down four individuals on Nov. 27, may have financed his killing spree with a $700,000 settlement from the City of Santa Monica. Powell, 33, faces charges for the murder of four men, including three homeless individuals, between Nov. 26 and Nov. 29.

Powell’s recent arrest in Beverly Hills followed a police sighting of his BMW, captured near the crime scene of Nicholas Simbolon’s murder. Authorities believe Powell trailed the LA County project manager from an electric vehicle charging station in West Covina, eventually shooting him at his San Dimas home. Simbolon’s wife discovered his body, and paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene.

Jose Bolanos, 37, Mark Diggs, 62, and an unnamed 52-year-old homeless man were among Powell’s other victims. The suspect appeared in court for an arraignment hearing, charged with four counts of murder, residential robbery, and being a felon with a firearm. He did not enter a plea and is set to return to court on Jan. 8.

Police Chief Michel Moore revealed that a handgun found in Powell’s car matched the one used in the killing of three homeless men. Powell, previously convicted of assault with a deadly weapon in 2018, has a history of violence. LA County Sheriff Robert Luna defended the controversial license plate reader technology, which was crucial in identifying Powell’s car. Despite concerns raised by civil liberties groups, Luna emphasized the system’s role in preventing further harm, stating, “If we did not enter that plate into the system, this individual that we believe is responsible for at least four murders may have been out there and reoffended. The next objective is to put this guy away at minimum forever because he doesn’t deserve to be out on the street.”

The suspect filed a 2020 lawsuit alleging negligence in a 2019 incident, leading to the city’s settlement this year. Powell had attempted to sue a landlord for $3.3 million in 2019, but the case was dismissed.

The unsettling details emerged as investigators uncovered Powell’s possible connection to a significant settlement awarded after a 2019 incident where a Santa Monica Harbor Services Officer accidentally ran over him on a beach. The city settled a lawsuit alleging negligence, stating that the officer rolled over Powell while he lay in a ditch in the sand, responding to a fire call.