Venice Hotelier Charged with Murder after Witnesses Accuse Him of Ordering Shooting

The owner of a Venice Beach hotel was charged today with murder for his alleged role in a transient’s shooting death during a disturbance.

Sris Sinnathamby, 54, pleaded not guilty this afternoon in the death of 26-year-old Jascent Warren, who was shot shortly after 2 a.m. Sunday near Rose Avenue and Ocean Front Walk.

A judge set bail at $1 million for Sinnathamby, who owns the Cadillac Hotel on Dudley Avenue. He has been jailed since his arrest shortly after 8 a.m. Sunday.

Police were tight-lipped about the investigation into Warren’s shooting death, initially even refusing to disclose Sinnathamby’s name out of fear that it “could taint the investigation.”

Witnesses told CBS2 that the hotel owner was with a gunman at the time of the shooting. Witnesses also told the station the unidentified gunman was operating under orders from the hotel owner.

A staff member at the Cadillac Hotel tole Patch.com no one was available to comment on behalf of Sinnathamby.

Warren was among a large crowd of people in front of the Cadillac Hotel when a fight broke out over who was camping where, witnesses told reporters.

Just after sunrise Sunday, Los Angeles police Sgt. Barry Montgomery said “it appears now, at this time, that this incident was triggered by some sort of dispute among locals, which triggered this deadly attack.”

Police radio broadcasts said the shooter left the scene in a black SUV, heading south on Speedway, the alley just inland from Ocean Front Walk.

The shooting remains under investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department.

If convicted of the murder count, Sinnathamby faces up to life in state prison, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

City News Service; Photo: Shutterstock