Rihanna, her partner A$AP Rocky, their three children and her mother were all at home when a woman now charged with attempted murder and many other felony counts is alleged to have fired at the property, a prosecutor said Tuesday.
Ivanna Lisette Ortiz, 35, of Orlando, Florida, was charged with attempting to kill Rihanna, along with 10 counts of assault on a person with a semiautomatic firearm and three counts of shooting at an inhabited vehicle or dwelling, authorities said. No one was injured.
The singing superstar and her rap star partner were together in a trailer on the property at the time of the Sunday afternoon shooting, while other family members and staffers were in the Beverly Hills-area home, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said outside a court hearing.
Inside court, Deputy Public Defender Jamarcus Bradford, Ortiz’s attorney, at first entered a plea of not guilty on her behalf, but then withdrew it in favor of postponing arraignment until March 25. She was ordered held on $1.8 million bail. Ortiz wore blue jail clothes with her blond hair in braids and spoke to the lawyer through a glass divider.
Bradford didn’t talk to reporters outside court.
The LA County Public Defender’s Office said in a statement that it could not comment on the pending case against Ortiz.
“As in every case, we will work to ensure that our client receives the full protections guaranteed under the Constitution,” the statement said.
Ortiz could get life in prison if convicted on all charges. All 14 counts against her are felonies. The three counts of firing at a dwelling were for Rihanna’s house, her trailer, and a neighbor’s house, prosecutors said. The 10 assault counts were for Rihanna and family, two staffers and two people in the neighboring house.
“LA based celebrities should not be additionally worried because of this,” Hochman said, “in large part because of the response of the police.” He praised officers for arresting Ortiz soon after the shooting, several miles (kilometers) to the north in the suburb of Sherman Oaks.
Judge Theresa McGonigle issued a protective order for Ortiz to stay away from Robin Fenty and Rakim Mayers — the legal names of Rihanna and A$AP Rocky — and their home. McGonigle also said Ortiz is not allowed to possess any firearms or ammunition along with several other conditions.
The hearing was held in a courtroom a few floors from where Rocky went through a trial where he was acquitted just over a year ago. Rihanna was often in attendance, sometimes with their sons.
And the lead prosecutor in the new case is Alexander Bott, the deputy district attorney who successfully prosecuted rapper Tory Lanez in a trial where he was convicted of shooting hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion in the feet.
Hochman would not say where any of the bullets landed, would not say how long Ortiz had been in California, or discuss her motivation or any connection to Rihanna, saying all were under investigation.
Public records show her most recent address was in Orlando and that she has been a licensed speech pathologist for more than a decade.
The Associated Press also sent emails seeking comment from Rihanna’s publicist and manager.
In 2018, a man was accused of breaking into another home belonging to Rihanna in the Hollywood Hills and spending 12 hours there. The man pleaded no contest to felony counts of stalking and vandalism and a misdemeanor count of resisting arrest in 2019. He was sentenced to probation.
A nine-time Grammy Award winner, Rihanna has 14 No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including “We Found Love,” “Work,” “Umbrella” and “Disturbia.” She founded the makeup brand Fenty Beauty in 2017.
She and A$AP Rocky announced the birth of their third child, a girl named Rocki Irish Mayers, in September.
Associated Press Writer Christopher Weber contributed.
