Associated Press
MOBILE, Ala. (AP) — A University of South Alabama freshman charged with murder in a fatal stabbing banged on a neighbor's door frantically seeking help before authorities found his on-campus apartment splattered with blood and a body inside, a witness said.
Rachel Cumbo, an athlete at the college, said Brandon Ashkan Ajizadeh had scratches on his hands when he banged on her door saying his roommate needed assistance.
Later, she said, a resident adviser helped officers open the door to the first-floor apartment.
"They opened the door and the RA ran away," Cumbo told WKRG-TV. "She had her face covered. I guess that's when they (saw) the body."
Authorities said Ajizadeh, 19, was charged in the killing of James Franklin Dean, 19. The relationship between the two wasn't clear, but school officials said the victim was not a student.
Cars lined a street outside Dean's home in Mobile as family and friends brought food to his grieving parents.
"I cannot imagine why someone would want to harm him," said neighbor Kathleen Jackson, fighting back tears. "Ever since I've known him, ever since he was a little baby, nothing but nice things."
Ajizadeh was being held in the Mobile jail awaiting a bond hearing set for Tuesday. Court records did not indicate whether he had a defense attorney, but the university's police chief, Zeke Aull, said the suspect admitted to the killing.
The killing unnerved students at South Alabama, which is conducting summer classes.
"We just have a lot of police and campus security here. I just never thought anything like this could happen," said student Akeen Appleton.
Court records show a judge in Baldwin County issued a warrant for Ajizadeh's arrest late last month after he did not appear in court on a charge of failing to provide proof of insurance after a car accident.
Rachel Cumbo, an athlete at the college, said Brandon Ashkan Ajizadeh had scratches on his hands when he banged on her door saying his roommate needed assistance.
Later, she said, a resident adviser helped officers open the door to the first-floor apartment.
"They opened the door and the RA ran away," Cumbo told WKRG-TV. "She had her face covered. I guess that's when they (saw) the body."
Authorities said Ajizadeh, 19, was charged in the killing of James Franklin Dean, 19. The relationship between the two wasn't clear, but school officials said the victim was not a student.
Cars lined a street outside Dean's home in Mobile as family and friends brought food to his grieving parents.
"I cannot imagine why someone would want to harm him," said neighbor Kathleen Jackson, fighting back tears. "Ever since I've known him, ever since he was a little baby, nothing but nice things."
Ajizadeh was being held in the Mobile jail awaiting a bond hearing set for Tuesday. Court records did not indicate whether he had a defense attorney, but the university's police chief, Zeke Aull, said the suspect admitted to the killing.
The killing unnerved students at South Alabama, which is conducting summer classes.
"We just have a lot of police and campus security here. I just never thought anything like this could happen," said student Akeen Appleton.
Court records show a judge in Baldwin County issued a warrant for Ajizadeh's arrest late last month after he did not appear in court on a charge of failing to provide proof of insurance after a car accident.
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