Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Brianna Kupfer: Father of murdered UCLA student slams leak of daughter’s autopsy report

“It’s glorifying a horrible tragedy for entertainment,” said Todd Kupfer

Graeme Massie
Los Angeles
Friday 29 July 2022 16:41 EDT
Related video: Family, friends remember slain UCLA student Brianna Kupfer

The father of the UCLA graduate student who was stabbed to death in a random daytime attack in Los Angeles earlier this year speaks out against his daughter’s autopsy report being leaked.

Brianna Kupfer, 24, was working by herself in a Los Angeles furniture store when she was fatally stabbed by Shawn Laval Smith, police say.

“You have people who don’t really care about humanity and, for whatever selfish gain or for whatever reason, they act without authority and without a conscience,” Todd Kupfer told Fox News Digital.

“Everybody knows she was brutally murdered. I don’t know why people would need to know more than that. It’s glorifying a horrible tragedy for entertainment.”

The results of the autopsy were obtained by The New York Post, which reported that Kupfer suffered 26 stab wounds in the January horror attack.

The 31-year-old suspect fled from the scene and was later arrested by police and charged with murder.

Criminal proceedings in the case are on hold while prosecutors await the results of a mental health evaluation, which was requested by defence lawyers, according to Fox News.

(Getty Images)

Kupfer had texted a friend to say she had a “bad vibe” from the suspect before he attacked her with a knife, but the friend did not see it in time.

“She sent a text to a friend letting her know that there was someone inside the location that was giving her a bad vibe,” said Lt. John Radtke at the time. “Regrettably, that person did not see the text immediately.”

A customer later found the victim “lying on the ground, lifeless, covered in blood.”

The Los Angeles Police Department called the attack “random” in a press conference after the slaying.

The suspect has a long criminal history, including gun charges, and was previously accused of attacking a police officer, says Fox News.

Kupfer was studying for a graduate degree in interior design at the time of her killing and had worked at the store for more than a year.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in