OAKLAND — A man already being prosecuted in a similar but non-fatal attack has been charged with murder in the Dec. 13 skateboard beating death of a man who was sleeping on the sidewalk in the Temescal district of North Oakland, according to authorities and court records.
Joshua Stroman, 36, of Oakland, was charged Friday in the killing of 40-year-old Kenyon Graham, a homeless man who was found dead with massive head trauma about 12:44 a.m. in the 500 block of 45th Street near Telegraph Avenue.
According to court documents, Stroman was the person who called 9-1-1 to report the attack but did not give his name.
Based on the phone call and video surveillance, police determined that Stroman, who listed an address in the 4400 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Way, was the alleged killer. He was arrested Thursday afternoon in the 800 block of 45th Street, a few blocks from where the beating happened. The documents say he was carrying a skateboard that police believe was the one used in the attack, as well as a cell phone believed to be the one used to call 9-1-1.
According to the documents, Stroman has admitted his involvement in the attack. Police said the men knew each other but have not released a motive for the killing.
Stroman was being held without bail at Santa Rita Jail and was scheduled for arraignment Monday morning.
According to authorities, Stroman is also facing prosecution for allegedly hitting a man in the head with a skateboard June 21 in Palo Alto, in an unprovoked attack that left the victim hospitalized. Palo Alto police said in a news release at the time that the victim, a man in his 40s, did not know Stroman — who listed an East Palo Alto address at the time — or why he was targeted.
The victim was with his mother when he was attacked in the courtyard of the Opportunity Center at 33 Encina Ave. Police identified Stroman as the suspect; he was arrested June 25 in East Palo Alto and charged June 28 with assault with a deadly weapon. At his arraignment June 29 he did not enter a plea and was placed on supervised release, according to court records.
Staff writer Robert Salonga contributed to this report.
