Oakland reached a grim milestone on Monday, as the city’s latest homicide victim ratcheted the count up to 131, compared to 107 last year at this time.
The city hasn’t seen this level of violence since 2012, according to reporting by KTVU.
Early Monday morning, just before 1 a.m., police responded to a call about a dead man on the sidewalk on the 500 block of 45th Street in Oakland, the Oakland Police Department told KCBS Radio in an emailed statement.
When officers arrived at the scene, the man appeared to have suffered blunt force trauma to the head. Despite medical intervention, the victim succumbed to his injuries.
As of Monday, he was identified as 43-year-old Kenyon Graham, an Oakland resident. The investigation into his death is ongoing.
Along with the uptick in homicides, the Oakland Police Department reported 45 instances of gunfire last week alone, with officers recovering 1,137 firearms in the past year. Last week, there were also 39 robberies and four carjackings.
"We must come together as a city to end the violence in our community," OPD wrote in a statement posted to social media.
"OPD encourages residents and business owners to consider installing security cameras as well as alarms," the statement added. "These technologies can both deter crime and help solve crimes after they occur."
