A dentist in California convicted in August of strangling his mother to death at her mansion was sentenced on October 3 to life in prison without the chance for parole, according to multiple news stories.
On August 22, a jury found Dr. Daniel Yacobi guilty of first-degree murder of his 67-year-old mother Violet at her mansion in Beverly Hills in 2017. Prosecutors said Yacobi murdered her to inherit part of his mother’s $12 million estate.
The defense argued that Yacobi was not guilty and questioned whether his mother was strangled. The defense contended that his mother may have died from a blunt force injury caused by falling from a second-story balcony.
Also, the defense argued that Yacobi didn’t need money, claiming he had recently secured a $1 million loan on his own for a dental practice in Inglewood, CA, that he had been negotiating to buy, according to news stories.
On October 10, 2017, Violet’s brother became suspicious when his sister didn’t respond to a call about driving her to the mechanic. That same night, Violet was found dead at her mansion.
In February 2018, Yacobi was arrested and eventually charged with his mother’s death after a coroner ruled that her death was a homicide.
During the trial, an acquaintance of Yacobi testified that he was very depressed, hated working in dentistry, and that his parents pushed him into that field. Furthermore, Yacobi allegedly said his mother was controlling, and he hated both his parents. Yacobi’s father died in 2016.
A family friend also told police that Yacobi asked him about inheritance tax, according to stories.
