Homeless Man Pleads Not Guilty To Murder In Long Beach Arson Attack
LONG BEACH (CBSLA.com) — A homeless man accused of setting a 63-year-old man on fire in a sports utility vehicle outside a convenience store in Long Beach last week was charged Tuesday with capital murder and arson.
Raymond Sean Clark, 38, pleaded not guilty in Long Beach Superior Court to one count each of murder and arson causing great bodily injury.
The murder charge includes the special circumstance allegations of murder by means of lying in wait, murder involving the infliction of torture and murder while engaged in the crime of mayhem.
Prosecutors will later decide if they want to seek the death penalty against Clark, who is behind bars without bail.
Clark allegedly walked up to the driver's side of Jerry Payne's Toyota 4-Runner at a 7-Eleven on Clark Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway Friday night and tossed a flammable substance inside.
The suspect was arrested a short time later.
Witnesses helped douse Payne with water, but the victim died at the hospital around 2 a.m. Monday from his injuries.
The investigation is ongoing.
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