Naman Shrestha
In the summer of 2020, a former ‘Gigolos’ cast member named Akshaya Kubiak, popularly known as Ash Armand, became involved in the brutal murder of a young female client named Herleen Dulai. The entire case and the complicated investigation that followed are covered in a detailed manner in Paramount+ ‘Sin City Gigolo: A Murder in Las Vegas,’ a three-part docuseries that also features exclusive interviews with other ‘Gigolos’ cast members and the killer’s former colleagues.
Akshaya Kubiak Was Having Relationship Troubles When He Met Herleen Dulai
Born around 1982 to Rita Dixit-Kubiak, Akshaya Kubiak grew up in an open-minded family and received their support when he entered the escort business. What catapulted his popularity in the industry was his regular appearance in the Showtime reality series ‘Gigolos,’ which follows a group of escort men as they provide their services to different clients. As his popularity arose, he became better known by his stage name, Ash Armand. Even after the show ended in 2016, Akshaya continued to work in the industry while also maintaining a separate private life.
According to the show, Akshaya got into a couple of relationships following his appearance in ‘Gigolos.’ He reportedly dated Toochi Kash for a while before getting romantically involved with her friend, Tia Evan. By the time the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in 2020, Tia had moved into his Las Vegas house on the 8400 block of Blackstone Ridge Court. However, within a few months later, their relationship started showing signs of cracks. While Akshaya and Tia were going through a rough patch, the former met with a client named Herleen Dulai in his house on the evening of July 15, 2020. They allegedly took psychedelic mushrooms together, and things started going out of hand, according to reports.
Akshaya brutally murdered his client in his bedroom and called 911 the following day around 10 am, asking for their help as Herleen seemed unresponsive. When the authorities conducted an autopsy on Herleen’s remains, they learned that she had multiple bruises across her body, and she had died of blunt force trauma and strangulation. As it seemed like an open-and-shut case, the police arrested Akshaya and charged him with the murder of Herleen Dulai.
Akshaya Kubiak is Serving His Sentence at a Nevada Prison Facility
Akshaya Kubiak reportedly accepted a plea agreement to alter the charge of murder. As per the deal, he pleaded guilty to felony counts of voluntary manslaughter and mayhem in September 2021. His defense attorney, Josh Tomsheck, addressed the judge and asserted that the reason Akshaya agreed to enter into a plea deal was to not let the case go to a stretched trial and consequently avoid exhibiting more emotional distress on Herleen Dulai’s family and loved ones. He also highlighted Akshaya’s consistency in relaying the events of the unfortunate day and asked him to consider his client’s lack of criminal history while determining his sentence. “For the entirety of the time that I’ve spoken to him, his story has not changed from what has occurred,” he said, asking for four years maximum imprisonment for Akshaya.
On the other hand, Prosecutor Giancarlo Pesci mentioned some significant points related to the injuries Herleen Dulai was subjected to. According to him, alongside the wounds to her face and shoulders as well as the fragment of the chipped tooth obtained from her stomach, she had sustained several defensive injuries on her forearms, indicating she was conscious enough to realize she was being attacked. “This is an individual who knows the beatings happened, even if she’s high on drugs,” he stated. In December 2021, at his sentencing, Akshaya took to the stands and claimed that he had no memory of ever attacking the Temple University graduate as he was “blacked out” after the consumption of drugs. “I have never hit a woman in my life, and I certainly never wanted to hurt Herleen,” he stated.
Akshaya further alleged that she was the one who attacked him. Adding to that, Josh emphasized the injuries Akshaya was operated for upon his arrest. The family members of Herleen Dulai — mother, father, sister, and brother — gave emotionally charged victim impact statements, expressing the heartwrenching grief they carried with them since they lost the 29-year-old. Her brother Parambir Dulai, who is a doctor, conveyed his shock at the brutality of her injuries, stating, “She wasn’t simply taken from us; she was brutally beaten to death.” After hearing from both sides, the judge sentenced then-40-year-old Akshaya Kubiak to 8 to 20 years in prison for the killing of Herleen Dulai in July 2020. As of today, Kubiak is incarcerated at the Southern Desert Correctional Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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