Elderly woman killed in murder-for-hire in Montecito, suspects arrested
March 8, 2024
By KAREN VEIE
Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown announced on Thursday the arrests of four people suspected of participating in a murder-for-hire scheme that led to the death of a 96-year-old Montecito woman.
On May 22, 2022, a caretaker arrived to find her charge, Violet Evelyn Alberts, dead in her home. Through an autopsy and evidence found at the scene, such as a broken window, deputies determined Albert had been smothered in her sleep.
The mastermind behind the plot, 48-year-old Pauline Macareno, had conned Albert into what the elderly woman believed was a reverse mortgage. However, Macareno had transferred Albert’s multi-million property into her own name.
In June 2022, deputies arrested Macareno for fraud and elder abuse. Macareno was then sentenced to six-years in prison for fraud.
Investigators recently arrested three other alleged conspirators in Alberts’ murder: 33-year-old Henry Rostomyan, 41-year-old Ricardo Martin Del Campo and 58-year-old Harry Basmadjian.
During their investigation, deputies uncovered evidence of a scouting trip conducted by MartinDelCampo and Rostomyan before the murder.
“This pivotal discovery shed light on the premeditated nature of the crime, underscoring the perpetrators’ calculated efforts to survey Alberts’ home and plan their vicious and reprehensible actions,” Sheriff Brown said.
During the past three months, deputies arrested Basmadjian, Rostomyan and MartinDelCampo.
At the time of his arrest, Basmadjian was in federal custody on an unrelated charge. He subsequently suffered a life-threatening medical emergency that left him totally incapacitated with a grim prognosis.
Deputies booked both Rostomyan and MartinDelCampo in Santa Barbara County Jail where they are being held without bail on charges of murder and conspiracy to murder Alberts.
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