A 19-year-old Beverly Hills resident accused of stabbing and killing a homeless man in an alley off the 400 block of North Palm Drive pleaded not guilty on Sept. 4 and was released on $2.02 million bail.

The defendant, Conoray Lawantara, was charged on Sept. 2 with one count of murder with the special allegation he used a deadly weapon – a knife – during the violent crime. The stabbing occurred around 11:40 p.m. on Aug. 30 after Lawantara allegedly confronted the victim, Vanik Voskanyan, 40, who was searching through trash cans in the alley behind the defendant’s residence. Beverly Hills Police Department officers arrived and found the victim suffering from stab wounds to his neck. Paramedics took the victim to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Lawantara remained at the scene and was interviewed by officers, who arrested him. A knife was recovered. Police said an “altercation” occurred between the defendant and victim before the stabbing, with Lawantara identified as the aggressor. The defendant also sustained injuries during the altercation and was treated before being released to the BHPD and booked for homicide.

Lawantara was released on bail on Sept. 4 and ordered to return to court on Nov. 5. As a condition of his release on bond, Lawantara, a citizen of Indonesia, was required to surrender his passport and to wear a GPS ankle monitor, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said.