Artist brutally murdered in Maryland

Iran Times International July 30, 2010:The brutalized body of Azin Naimi, an Iranian-born artist reported missing in Maryland last Monday, was found later that day 12 miles away in a Washington, DC, alley. The 45-year-old woman was noted for her skill in restoring centuries-old Russian art works. She had been living with her mother in North Bethesda, Maryland, just outside Washington, for the past year and half. When she did not come back from her studio three blocks away on Sunday evening, her mother, Mary Bazargan, got worried. Police began a search on Monday and found Naimi’s body in an alley near the US Capitol. But they determined that the scene of the crime had been her studio. Video surveillance showed Naimi walking toward her office door at about 7:30 p.m. Sunday. In her office, she encountered 35-year-old Raymond Williams, the building handyman. With no clear motive, Williams allegedly brutally attacked Naimi, beating her and stabbing her to death with a pair of scissors. The killer even thrust the scissors into one of her ear canals and broke two of her ribs. The killer then used a mop and towels to try to clean up the blood, which could still be seen later with forensic chemicals. Blood was also found later in Williams’ car. The killer disposed of the body in a Washington alley outside a residence the police say Williams telephoned about 3 1/2 hours after Naimi went to her studio. According to Detective Dimitry Ruvin, Williams, 35, confessed to the murder and transporting the body. Police sources told The Washington Post Williams reported drinking before Naimi’s arrival, but did not give a specific motive for killing her. Police said Naimi’s body was found with her pants pulled down, but they did not say if she had been sexually assaulted. Naimi was born in Iran. She was a graduate of Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London and had also studied art in Italy. At one time, she owned two galleries in the United States—one on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles—but she had sold both of them. She reportedly spoke five languages. Tony Kurtz, who leased the studio to Naimi and employed Williams, called Williams good-natured and said, “This is the last thing I would expect from him.” As for Naimi, whom he hired to restore paintings, Kurtz said, “Azin was driven by goodness.” According to her mother, Naimi gave food, blankets and money to the homeless and donated much of her earnings from her restoration work to such causes as Haiti relief.

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