77-year-old man beaten to death outside San Francisco 7-Eleven

SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco police are investigating an early morning homicide in Visitacion Valley where a 77-year-old man was killed during a bizarre attack at a 7-Eleven. 

Investigators say a man began attacking people at a 7-Eleven store on Bayshore Boulevard near Arleta Avenue at around 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday. 

Police said the suspect then left and attacked 77-year-old Richard Owens outside the store, beating him to death. 

The suspect was taken into custody as he was fleeing, police said. 

Police said it was a random attack and that surveillance video shows the vicious beating that Owens endured. Police had originally said that the victim was 73 years old. 

Police said the incident started when the suspect approached a 26-year-old man who was waiting at the bus stop in front of the 7-Eleven. 

The suspect pulled the 26-year-old into the convenience store and beat him. The suspect also attacked a 70-year-old employee and prevented the two victims from calling 911. He then approached Owens. 

"They had a dead body sitting on the side of the street with a tarp over it. It was really bad. There was a lot of blood. It didn't look right…really scary to know what happened," said Giesha Calloway, who lives in the neighborhood. 

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One man, who did not want to be identified, said he was shocked. 

"It was terrible. Somebody just got beaten to death. That was brutal and really scary." He said he works at the auto repair shop that is steps from the crime scene. He said he often deals with people who suffer from mental illness coming into the business. 

"One crazy guy came in here and beat us up. Me and my buddy, we were sent to the hospital for a few days because of a crazy random attack," he said. 

He said he now carries a Taser for protection. 

Calloway said she avoids walking in the area.

"It's not safe. They need some kind of security. They need security around here. It's getting out of hand. This is ridiculous," she said. 

Police have not released the identity of the suspect. 

The fire department said they transported two people to the hospital because of this incident. There was no update on their conditions. 

In a statement on Wednesday, Supervisor Shamann Walton said that police told him the attack was random. 

"It is heartbreaking to see this type of senseless violence on the seniors in our community," Walton said. "I am committed to working with our community, city departments, and law enforcement to prevent violent incidents like this from happening to our community and to our seniors."