Crime & Safety
Omar Loera Pleads Guilty to Murdering Valley Village Bride-to-Be Cheree Osmanhodzic
Transient admits to stabbing the 34-year-old in her home last July.
The case of a slain bride-to-be came to an emotional end Tuesday in a Van Nuys courtroom when Omar Armando Loera pleaded guilty to murder in the fatal stabbing of 34-year-old Cheree Osmanhodzic, two months to the day before her wedding date.
"I would give my life right now as we speak, if I could bring her back," Loera told the court as Osmanhodzic's family and friends wept in the courtroom.
As part of a plea agreement, Loera, 36, was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.
The story of those in Osmanhodzic’s Valley Village neighborhood and beyond. Osmanhodzic had spent the day of July 24, 2010, shopping for a wedding dress with her mother and sending out wedding invitations, prosecutors said.
Find out what's happening in North Hollywood-Toluca Lakewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
That evening, her fiance, Adam Culvey, left the couple’s Valley Village apartment in the 11500 block of Riverside Drive for a brief trip to a grocery store, police said. He returned to find a man, now determined to be Loera, inside his home.
Prosecutor Robert Grace told North Hollywood Patch that Loera shut the door after Culvey entered. The two scuffled. At some point, Loera stabbed Culvey, Grace said. Loera then ran out the back door with Culvey in pursuit. Culvey gave up after a long chase. He returned to find his apartment in flames.
Find out what's happening in North Hollywood-Toluca Lakewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
As firefighters put out the fire, the worst discovery was to come. Osmanhodzic had been stabbed to death. Police believe that Loera, a transient and a felon with a long rap sheet, had set the fire to cover up the killing and robbery attempt.
Loera was on parole after serving time for robbery when he killed Osmanhodzic. Prosecutors believe it was a crime of opportunity.
“Cheree had left the home to say goodbye to her mom,” Grace said. He added that Loera could have seen Osmanhodzic's open door from the street.
"Her last words to me were 'Mom, I love you,' " Osmanhodzic's mother, Gail Cameron, told the court through her tears. "Ever since that day, my life will never be the same. There will be no grandchildren to ever spoil."
"I'm kind of numb as a nail right now," Culvey told North Hollywood Patch outside the courthouse, unable to comment further.
Osmanhodzic's father, Michael Cameron, took no solace in Loera's courtroom apology.
"I wanted to jump across that table and grab him," Cameron said. He added that obviously he wouldn't do that in the heavily guarded courtroom.
Grace said that after massive publicity on the killing, tips had where Loera had fled. Loera is a U.S. citizen, but twice before Loera had convinced U.S. authorities to deport him by claiming to be in the U.S. illegally, Grace said.
His plea agreement means he can avoid a possible death sentence for killing Osmanhodzic during a burglary.
Cameron does not see Loera's sentence ending with life in prison, however.
"He'll have to face the Lord someday," Cameron said "And he'll have to justify what he's done."
Read more: www.newstimes.com/news/article/Man-pleads-guilty-in-slaying-of-LA-woman-1424129.php#ixzz1PIffr1j0
