Innocent Plea In Cosby Murder

Wed., May 14, 1997

Compiled From Wire Services

The man accused of killing Bill Cosby’s son in a botched robbery attempt pleaded innocent to murder Tuesday.

Mikail Markhasev, 18, did not speak during the Superior Court arraignment as his lawyer entered the plea. He smiled and nodded to his attorney in front of a crowded courtroom.

The grand jury indictment, unsealed with the plea, accuses Markhasev of one count of murder with the special circumstance of robbery or attempted robbery, and one count of attempted robbery.

Judge John H. Reid scheduled a pretrial hearing for May 30. Deputy District Attorney Anne Ingalls said her office will tell the court then whether it intends to seek the death penalty.

Ennis Cosby, 27, was shot to death early on Jan. 16 on a dark road just off the San Diego Freeway, where he had apparently stopped to fix a flat tire.

Markhasev, a Ukrainian immigrant who has been in the United States for eight years, has been in custody since he was arrested March 12.

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Innocent Plea In Cosby Murder

Jesse Tinsley

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