Suspect arrested in fatal stabbing of UCLA student

A suspect was arrested Tuesday in the killing of a young woman who was stabbed to death last week while working at an upscale furniture store in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Police Department announced on Twitter.

Shawn Laval Smith was taken into custody in Pasadena after the almost week-long search for the killer of Brianna Kupfer, a graduate student at UCLA. 

Kupfer was found dead on the floor of the Croft House furniture store on Thursday, 20 minutes after texting a friend at 1:36 p.m. expressing concern over a customer who gave her a “bad vibe.” Smith, 31, allegedly fled the scene shortly after fatally stabbing Kupfer in an seemingly random act of violence.

Los Angeles Police Department Lt. John Radtke said at a news conference Tuesday that there is no known motive at this time and that nothing was stolen from the store, according to USA Today.

Todd Kupfer, the victim’s father, called the death of his daughter “heart-wrenching.”

“It’s torn us apart,” he told the Los Angeles Times. “We really don’t know what to do and what steps to take. We just want her life to have more meaning.”

Smith, who is believed to be homeless, had a record of prior violence, including an arrest for firing a weapon inside an occupied vehicle.