Police are investigating the violent killing of a homeless man who was brutally beaten with a skateboard in North Park and died from his injuries Thursday.
Arthur Angulo, 55, of San Diego was sleeping in an alleyway last Saturday, when he was approached by a man carrying a skateboard. Without warning, the stranger began smashing the skateboard over the victim's head multiple times.
A married couple who lives near the alley heard a commotion and rushed outside. They discovered Angulo lying flat on the ground outside their home, drenched in blood, and immediately alerted the authorities.
Paramedics arrived and transported Angulo to Mercy Hospital where he was placed on life support with life-threatening head injuries.
On Thursday, doctors took him off life support. His organs were donated.
Police said the attack took place just after 4:30 a.m. in an alley off El Cajon Boulevard, behind a Jack in the Box restaurant.
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SDPD Lt. Todd Griffin told NBC 7 there appears to be a motive behind the killing, but it was not yet clear exactly what led up to the incident.
"We think there was some type of a confrontation, some sort of incident that led these two together and that’s what led to this confrontation," Griffin said. "From that aspect, it wasn’t random in nature. We believe Mr. Angulo was the intended target. We’re not sure of a reason or why this happened."
Griffin said the department does not believe the incident is a public safety issue or that there will be violence directed toward transients in the future.
"We’re confident that this is (random), and I say confident because we haven’t had similar types since then, certainly nothing that mirrors this specific one," Griffin said.
However, many homeless residents in the area said they were worried about the violence.
"You just get scared, you know, because you don’t know what’s going to happen," one woman said.
The suspect was seen driving off in a white sedan, according to San Diego police. He was described as a man in his late teens to early 20's with shoulder length hair. They said he is about 6-feet tall and was wearing gray shorts and a dark shirt.
Several North Park residents were shaken by the incident. They told NBC 7 there's been an apparent rise in the homeless population in their community.
SDPD is investigating the crime as a homicide case. Anyone with information about the killing can call the SDPD Homicide Unit at (619)531-2293.
