Loved ones are devastated after a woman was killed in a violent attack on the campus of El Camino College near Torrance.
The victim, identified only as an Asian woman in her 60s, was walking her dog on Christmas Eve morning around 7 a.m. when the attack happened, according to campus police.
As the victim was collecting recyclables, she was suddenly attacked by a man with a sledgehammer. He fled the scene before authorities arrived.
A passerby had spotted the fallen woman next to the gymnasium building. Arriving officers found the woman unconscious and bleeding from her head.
Her dog had remained by her side. Paramedics transferred the woman to a local hospital where she died on Christmas Day from her injuries.
After reviewing surveillance footage, campus police identified the suspect as Jeffery Davis, 40, a man they’ve spotted in the community before.
“The person that we had an idea of who was on the security footage is, we believe, a homeless person we’ve had contact with before,” said Sgt. Francisco Esqueda of El Camino College Police. “So we were able to go to the neighboring county park where he sometimes hangs out and that’s where we found him.”
Residents said the woman was known to walk her dog around the neighborhood for years.
One of the victim’s neighbors told KTLA she learned of the attack from the victim’s family after trying to deliver a gift to her.
“It’s devastating,” said Leslie Andersen, the victim’s neighbor. “It’s gut-wrenching. I’m still in shock. Our dogs became friends so they would play together and we would talk. Just the sweetest woman.”
Some residents are now on edge after the deadly attack.
“It’s scary seeing that a lot of people do come around this area where there are families,” said a local resident. “You might think they’re just homeless people but you don’t know their psychological or mental health so it’s a very scary thing.”
Davis was taken into custody as the case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. He is being held without bail. The motive behind the attack remains unclear.
The victim’s official cause of death will be determined by the L.A. County Department of Medical Examiner.
Anyone with information about this incident can call the LASD’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Anonymous tips can be submitted to “Crime Stoppers” at 800-222-8477 or online at lacrimestoppers.org.