San Bernardino police released video Wednesday showing a brutal attack on a 28-year-old woman in the search for her killer.
The graphic surveillance footage shows Karmond Stafford of Rialto being punched and beaten by a man outside a doughnut shop in San Bernardino about an hour before she was found dead, according to police.
Investigators believe the man seen beating Stafford is the same man who later killed her at the Foothill Villa apartment complex in the 2600 block of West Second Street on July 20. Officers responded to a 911 call at 6:20 a.m. and found Stafford in a carport, suffering from severe head trauma, police said.
She was taken to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead.
Surveillance video from the apartment complex shows the suspect but not any of the violent attack that took place before officers arrived. But investigators believe the victim and the suspect are beneath the carport roof and out of view, according to Sgt. John Echevarria.
“We believe that he is assaulting her again, and after the attack, he leaves her there for dead,” Echevarria said.
The video from the apartment complex was shot about an hour after the footage from outside a nearby doughnut shop, which shows a woman being punched repeatedly around 5 a.m.
She falls to the ground after a man punches her face and hits other parts of her body.
“There’s no explanation for what happened that morning,” Echevarria said.
“He clearly approaches her, starts punching her immediately,” he said. “When she falls down, he’s still punching her, still kicking her. As she’s down, he’s stomping on her head.”
During the clip, another woman walks over to the victim at one point, briefly appearing to try to help. But then she leaves with the suspect. Later, the victim manages to pull herself up using a fence and leaves the parking lot.
Echevarria said it’s not clear whether Stafford and the suspect were in a relationship.
“She was a nice person,” said Danita Jackson, a friend of Stafford.
The suspect has been described by police as a Black man in his 30s who stands between 5 feet, 9 inches and 5 feet, 10 inches tall. He is believed to weigh around 250 to 280 pounds.
Anyone with tips can reach Sgt. Tello at 909-384-5613 or tello_al@sbcity.org, or they can contact Detective Cunningham at 909-384-5745 or cunningham_jo@sbcity.org.
