Hollywood Woman Pleads Not Guilty to Murdering Clerk During Robbery

NORTH HOLLYWOOD, CA -- Two women pleaded not guilty Thursday to a capital murder charge stemming from a liquor store clerk's shooting death during an attempted robbery in North Hollywood last year.

Rosa Manuela Barrientos, 23, of Los Angeles, and Maria Michelle Inzunza, 25, of Hollywood, are charged in the Sept. 24 killing of Mohammed Kalam, 61, of North Hollywood at the Liquor Mart at Sherman Way and Bellaire Avenue.

The murder charge includes the special circumstance allegation of murder during the commission of an attempted robbery. Prosecutors have yet to decide whether to seek the death penalty against the two, who are also charged with attempted second-degree robbery.

The criminal complaint alleges that Barrientos intentionally discharged a handgun during the robbery, and that she has a 2015 conviction for second- degree robbery.

Customers and neighboring business operators said Kalam, a native of Bangladesh, had worked the late shift at the liquor store for many years.

Barrientos and Inzunza, who were arrested three days after the shooting, are due back in a Van Nuys courtroom on March 1 to get a date for a hearing to determine whether there is enough evidence to require them to stand trial.

City News Service; Photo: Shutterstock