Homeless Man In Wheelchair Beaten To Death In Riverside

RIVERSIDE (CBSLA.com) — A homeless man who used a wheelchair, and was known in the neighborhood for seeking spare change, was found beaten to death outside a barber shop early Sunday morning, Riverside police said.

Officers were called to a business complex in the 3300 block of Iowa Avenue at 4:35 a.m. and found the man, who Riverside police Sgt. David Amador said had been assaulted and died at the scene. The man's name was not released while authorities sought to notify relatives.

CBS2's Greg Mills says police are scanning surveillance video from a small market across the parking lot.

Employees of nearby businesses told Mills they didn't know the man's name but said he was a double amputee who would sometimes beg for money outside the stores.

A security guard also told Mills the victim carried a golf club for protection because he'd been robbed before.

Mills said the homeless man lived in an encampment near the strip mall, just next to the 60 Freeway.

Police ask that anyone with information on the crime call Detective Mike Medici at (951) 353-7104 or Detective Adrian Tillett at (951) 353-7105.