Mikhail Markhasev Still Alive: What Happened to the Man Who Killed Ennis Cosby?

It was one of those moments that froze time in the late 90s. Ennis Cosby, the only son of then-beloved TV icon Bill Cosby, was found dead on the side of a Los Angeles freeway. He was just 27, a graduate student with everything ahead of him, killed while simply trying to change a flat tire. The man who pulled the trigger was an 18-year-old immigrant named Mikhail Markhasev.

People still ask about him. Is Mikhail Markhasev still alive? Where is he now? Does he ever get out?

Honestly, the short answer is yes—Mikhail Markhasev is still alive. As of early 2026, he remains incarcerated within the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) system. He isn't some ghost or a forgotten footnote; he’s a middle-aged man living out a permanent sentence.

The Reality of His Life Sentence

When Markhasev was sentenced back in August 1998, the judge didn't leave much room for "what ifs." He was handed life in prison without the possibility of parole. Plus an extra 10 years just for the firearm use.

You've got to understand how heavy that "without" is. In the California legal system, LWOP (Life Without Parole) is basically a death sentence carried out in slow motion. Unless a governor grants clemency—which is incredibly rare for high-profile murder cases—Markhasev will never see the outside of a prison fence again.

For years, he was housed at the California State Prison, Corcoran. This isn't your average "Orange is the New Black" setup. Corcoran is home to some of the most notorious names in American crime history. We're talking about the place that held Charles Manson and Sirhan Sirhan.

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Why People Keep Checking In

The fascination usually stems from how much things have changed since 1997. Back then, Bill Cosby was "America's Dad." The murder of his son felt like a personal tragedy for millions of households. Then, decades later, the elder Cosby's own legal battles and convictions shifted the narrative around the family entirely.

But for Markhasev, the world stopped moving forward in a different way.

A Surprising Confession in 2001

For the first few years of his sentence, Markhasev maintained he was innocent. He fought the conviction. He filed appeals. His lawyers argued that the evidence was flimsy and that he was being scapegoated because of the Cosby name.

Then, in 2001, something shifted.

Markhasev did something almost unheard of in these kinds of cases: he confessed. He didn't just admit it to a cellmate; he wrote a letter to the California Attorney General’s office. He asked them to stop his appeals.

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"I am guilty, and I want to do the right thing," he essentially told the courts.

He expressed remorse. He apologized to the Cosby family. He admitted that he had murdered Ennis Cosby during a botched robbery attempt because he was high on drugs and frustrated. It was a rare moment of transparency in a case that had been defined by racial tension and media circus.

Where is Mikhail Markhasev Now?

While inmates are sometimes moved for safety or administrative reasons, Markhasev has spent the bulk of his adult life in the Protective Housing Unit (PHU).

Because of the "celebrity" nature of his victim, he's a target in general population. Prison is a hierarchy, and killing the son of a famous person—even one who later became controversial—doesn't necessarily buy you friends. It buys you a target on your back.

Physically, he doesn't look like the 18-year-old with the thick hair you see in the old 1997 news clips. People who have interviewed him in the last decade describe a man who looks more like a librarian or a graduate student himself. He wears reading glasses. He has a shaved head. He’s spent more time behind bars than he ever spent as a free man.

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The Legacy of a Botched Robbery

It’s wild to think that the entire trajectory of multiple families changed because of a flat tire on the I-405.

• Ennis Cosby was heading to see a friend.
• Mikhail Markhasev was at a nearby park-and-ride lot with friends.
• The motive was simple, stupid greed—a robbery that yielded nothing but a life sentence.

There are no secret updates or "early release" rumors to report. Markhasev is currently 47 years old. If he lives to be 80, he will still be in a cell. If he lives to be 100, he will still be in a cell.

Actionable Insights for Researching Cases

If you are looking for real-time updates on high-profile inmates like Markhasev, don't rely on TikTok rumors. Use the tools actually provided by the state:

• CDCR Inmate Locator: You can search the California Department of Corrections website using his name or his CDC number. This will tell you his current housing facility and his eligibility for parole (which, in his case, will always show "N/A" or "LWOP").
• Court Records: If there were ever a change in his status, it would appear in the Los Angeles County Superior Court filings first.
• Official Confessions: If you want to read his own words, look up the 2001 transcripts where he waived his right to appeal. It’s a sobering look at a man finally owning up to a life-altering mistake.

The story of Mikhail Markhasev is basically a closed book. He is alive, he is aging, and he is exactly where the court told him he’d be nearly thirty years ago.

Next Steps for Deep Research
If you want to understand the legal nuance of why he didn't get the death penalty, you should look into the California prosecutorial decisions of 1997. Specifically, research the "Special Circumstances" filings that allowed for LWOP instead of execution. You can also look up the Cosby v. Markhasev civil documentation for details on the forensic evidence used in the trial.