LOS ANGELES -- A fired employee of a bondage parlor has been charged with killing the club's owner and dog before torching the building near Los Angeles International Airport.
Prosecutors on Thursday charged 53-year-old David Edward Albert of Simi Valley with first-degree murder with a handgun allegation, arson and animal cruelty. Bail is set at nearly $3 million.
Prosecutor David Cheng says Albert shot Passive Arts Studio owner John Lavine several times in the head before starting Tuesday's blaze in the building in the unincorporated Lennox area.
Sheriff's investigators say Albert was fired last week from his job as maintenance worker. Lavine's charred body was found in the 7,000-square-foot facility that catered to people interested in sexual fetishes involving bondage, discipline, dominance and submission.
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