Shocking footage shows man setting homeless person on fire after dousing him with fuel in California
Warning: Distressing content
SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA: A homeless man is now in critical condition in hospital after a cyclist doused him with fuel and set him alight.
The cyclist was caught on security camera footage which captured the vile and sickening attack on the unsuspecting victim. The incident took place in Santa Ana in California on Good Friday, April 10. The victim was doused in an inflammable liquid and was then set alight.
In the video clip, the cyclist is seen peddling up to the 64-year-old victim who is seen lying slumped against the wall of a closed store. According to the police, the cyclist is another transient who they were able to identify as 45-year-old Adrian Alberto Rodriguez Herrera. Herrera was seen shaking a liquid all over the victim who desperately tried to swat at him in a bid to protect himself. Within moments of pouring the liquid, Herrera seen striking a light leaving the victim engulfed in flames.
The unprovoked attack took place near 1st Street and Broadway. Herrera's victim was left with first, second, and third-degree burns to his upper body. He was taken to a local trauma and burn center where he is currently in critical condition, CBS LA reports.
The suspect was seen fleeing the scene of the crime on his cycle after burning his victim. As per a report by the Santa Ana PD, detectives had worked with officers from the SAPD Quality of Life Team (QOLT) who specialize in dealing with and talking to homeless people, they saw Herrara and his cycle and proceeded to detain him as he matched the description of the arson and attempted murder suspect.
On April 13, QOLT officers detained Herrara and then alerted Homicide Section detectives. The detectives then conducted witness interviews and obtained additional footage. Herrera was arrested on suspicion of arson and attempted murder.
The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information about this crime can call (714) 245-8390.
Amid the coronavirus lockdown, the homeless seem to be amongst the most vulnerable section of people. Recently, it was reported that San Fransisco and Northern California's largest homeless center was facing a massive outbreak of the coronavirus with around 70 people testing positive for the virus, Mayor London Breed revealed on Friday, April 10.
Breed said that the number included 68 sheltered people as well as two staff members. San Francisco Department of Public Health Director Grant Colfax shared that the shelter would be converted into a “medical care facility” and a few of those who tested positive would be treated on-site.
"We are doing everything we can for them and to reduce the size of the outbreak," Colfax shared.