SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man accused of killing his ex-wife and seven other people at a Southern California salon last year has pleaded not guilty to a murder indictment that replaces charges originally filed by Orange County prosecutors.
City News Service says 42-year-old Scott Dekraai of Huntington Beach entered pleas Wednesday to eight murder counts and one of attempted murder. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
A grand jury indictment allows the case to proceed to trial without a preliminary hearing of the evidence.
Authorities allege that Dekraai had a phone argument with his ex-wife over custody of their 8-year-old son and then walked into her Seal Beach workplace last October and shot staff, customers and a motorist outside. Eight victims died and one survived.
