Transient Accused of Beating Man to Death at Wal-Mart Heads to Court
The suspect accused of murdering 74-year-old Dave Oakleaf at a Lakewood Wal-Mart is due in court today. Richard Lawrence Kalfin, a local 46-year-old transient, has been accused of beating Oakleaf to death with a baseball bat from the store's sporting goods section.
Investigators say the attack was a random act of violence. Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau Lt. Eddie Hernandez told L.A. Now that the attack appeared to be methodical and unprovoked.
Witnesses reported that Kalfin approached Oakleaf in the sporting goods section, asking for money. Kalfin apparently disagreed with Oakleaf's response, prompting the fatal attack. Witnesses say Kalfin repeatedly swung the bat at Oakleaf's head until he lay dead on the Wal-Mart floor.
Surveillance cameras show the assailant wandering the store before Oakleaf entered. At some point, Kalfin grabbed the bat and continued to roam the aisles, stopping when he saw Oakleaf.
Cameras also captured Kalfin exiting the store, and he was later arrested. He is currently being held on $1 million bail.
Police are describing the incident as one of the most brutal killings they've ever seen. Jennifer Thompson witnessed the beating.
"It was very scary — very, very scary, to hear the noise of someone's life being taken away," she told KCAL-TV, reports CBS News. "Noises like moans and groans ... you could hear when he hit him. It was awful, so awful. And then I went around the corner and peeked ... and he just walked out like it was nothing."
Wal-Mart said in a statement released on Wednesday, as reported by CBS LA, “We express our deepest condolences to the family of this man as they grieve the loss of their loved one. We are working closely with law enforcement to offer what information we have such as surveillance video that might help with the investigation."
