Man dies after being set on fire inside his SUV by homeless man
A man who was set on fire while sitting in his SUV at a Southern California convenience store has died.
Coroner's Chief Craig Harvey says 63-year-old Jerry Arnold Payne died early Monday of burns he suffered on his upper torso.
Payne was inside his Toyota SUV in front of a Long Beach 7-Eleven on Friday when a homeless man threw a flammable substance inside the car. Police say the car's interior and the man went up in flames.
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63-year-old Jerry Arnold Payne died early Monday of burns he suffered on his upper torso
Horrific attack: 63-year-old Jerry Payne died Monday of injuries sustained when he was set alight in his car on Long Beach after he refused to give the beggar money
Firefighters rush to put out the flaming SUV after Payne was set ablaze inside it
Officers arrested 38-year-old Raymond Sean Clark a block away and held him for investigation of attempted murder and for two misdemeanor warrants for failing to appear on other charges.
Investigators are trying to determine what motivated the attack.
Payne is said to have walked past the panhandler as he requested money, according to ABC.
Bystanders helped douse the flames and Clark was arrested a block away.
Clark was jailed on suspicion of attempted murder and on some misdemeanor warrants.
He was being held in lieu of $502,000 bail.
Man set ablaze by homeless man for not having change
It looks as if a bomb went off inside the SUV after it was torched by a panhandler
Suspect Raymond Sean Clark is taken into custody on charges of attempted murder
'This is an unsettling crime, a horrific act,' Eaton told NBC Bay Area.
'The potential for other people to get hurt through the vehicle catching fire next door, the building, someone walking by ... it's extremely unsettling for sure.
'Right now it appears to be a random act,' he said.
Steve Cox said he gave spare change to the alleged attacker minutes before the fire.
'He didn’t seem like he was going to harm anybody. He wasn’t very aggressive or anything. I mean, asking for change, he seemed like a nice guy,' Cox said.
'I’m really surprised about what happened. It’s outrageous.'
'This is an unsettling crime' a police officer said of the attack
One witness said he's seen the suspect, Clark, often around the neighborhood.
'He's always outside the 7-Eleven asking for money and smoking cigarettes,' the man, who did not want to be identified, told the Los Angeles Daily News.
Shannon Flynn, 16, of Long Beach, said the victim 'was engulfed in flames. The fire was so big, people were screaming. I just can't believe this happened here.'
Robert Linkroum saw Clark approaching the SUV and described him as a man 'walking on a mission' as he threw what looked like a bottle into the vehicle.'It was crazy,' he said. 'The vehicle went up in flames immediately, just totally engulfed. It was all flames. It became so hot in 7-Eleven that I moved towards the back of the store because I thought the windows were going to blow
Coroner's Chief Craig Harvey says 63-year-old Jerry Arnold Payne died early Monday of burns he suffered on his upper torso.
Payne was inside his Toyota SUV in front of a Long Beach 7-Eleven on Friday when a homeless man threw a flammable substance inside the car. Police say the car's interior and the man went up in flames.
SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO
63-year-old Jerry Arnold Payne died early Monday of burns he suffered on his upper torso
Horrific attack: 63-year-old Jerry Payne died Monday of injuries sustained when he was set alight in his car on Long Beach after he refused to give the beggar money
Firefighters rush to put out the flaming SUV after Payne was set ablaze inside it
Officers arrested 38-year-old Raymond Sean Clark a block away and held him for investigation of attempted murder and for two misdemeanor warrants for failing to appear on other charges.
Investigators are trying to determine what motivated the attack.
Payne is said to have walked past the panhandler as he requested money, according to ABC.
Bystanders helped douse the flames and Clark was arrested a block away.
Clark was jailed on suspicion of attempted murder and on some misdemeanor warrants.
He was being held in lieu of $502,000 bail.
Man set ablaze by homeless man for not having change
It looks as if a bomb went off inside the SUV after it was torched by a panhandler
Suspect Raymond Sean Clark is taken into custody on charges of attempted murder
'This is an unsettling crime, a horrific act,' Eaton told NBC Bay Area.
'The potential for other people to get hurt through the vehicle catching fire next door, the building, someone walking by ... it's extremely unsettling for sure.
'Right now it appears to be a random act,' he said.
Steve Cox said he gave spare change to the alleged attacker minutes before the fire.
'He didn’t seem like he was going to harm anybody. He wasn’t very aggressive or anything. I mean, asking for change, he seemed like a nice guy,' Cox said.
'I’m really surprised about what happened. It’s outrageous.'
'This is an unsettling crime' a police officer said of the attack
One witness said he's seen the suspect, Clark, often around the neighborhood.
'He's always outside the 7-Eleven asking for money and smoking cigarettes,' the man, who did not want to be identified, told the Los Angeles Daily News.
Shannon Flynn, 16, of Long Beach, said the victim 'was engulfed in flames. The fire was so big, people were screaming. I just can't believe this happened here.'
Robert Linkroum saw Clark approaching the SUV and described him as a man 'walking on a mission' as he threw what looked like a bottle into the vehicle.'It was crazy,' he said. 'The vehicle went up in flames immediately, just totally engulfed. It was all flames. It became so hot in 7-Eleven that I moved towards the back of the store because I thought the windows were going to blow
