Ex-husband charged in machete attack on former wife, jazz DJ

Juan Guerra/AP

Los Angeles County paramedics care for a woman Monday who officials say suffered multiple stab wounds from a machete wielded against her and her boyfriend, Jerry Sharell, by her former husband.

The jealous former husband who attacked his ex-wife and her new boyfriend with a machete and pocket knife Sunday morning allegedly cut the tip of his former wife's nose off before slitting his own wrists, prosecutors said.

Behnam Vasseghi, 57, was formally charged Tuesday with attempted murder, torture, criminal threats, false imprisonment and other felony counts after he allegedly broke into the house of radio personality Jerry Sharell and went on his bloody rampage, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles District Attorney said.

Sharell, the host of a Sunday jazz program who also worked with The Carpenters, Joe Cocker and Curtis Mayfield as a music label executive, was cut multiple times on his throat during the three-hour hostage ordeal, authorities said.

"[The suspect] would ask a question, and if he didn't like the answer, he'd cut the boyfriend on the neck," Los Angeles Police Sgt. Alex Kim told City News Service.

Vasseghi eventually turned the knife on himself in front of his former wife, prosecutors said.

The slashing spree finally ended when the woman escaped and called police.

Neighbor Harold Sulman said he saw Vasseghi drive up to Sharell's Woodland Hills home on a motorcycle around 8 a.m. Sunday and pull out a bouquet of flowers, his wife told the Daily News.

"It's so terrifying. I left and came back during that time and had no idea. You just don't know what's going in another house," Alice Sulman said.

"Jerry is just the nicest guy — so cute and adorable. His wife passed away about a year ago," she said. "We're all hoping Jerry makes a full recovery and this didn't affect his vocal chords. He has the smoothest voice."

Sharell's current radio show on KKJZ is called "Sundays with Sinatra."

Frank Sinatra was famously nicknamed Ol' Blue Eyes, and Alice Sulman said Sharell's license plate is a play on that: Ol' Brown Eyes.

She said police interviewed her and her husband.

"Apparently this monster wanted to make his ex-wife watch as he tortured and killed Jerry and then killed himself," she said.

The suspect was scheduled for arraignment in court Tuesday afternoon, and prosecutors said they would ask that his bail be set at $5.1 million.

If convicted, he faces up to life in prison.

ndillon@nydailynews.com