Beverly Hills police arrested a man they say beat another man with a metal object and then ran him over Friday, dragging the victim for a short distance.
Police officials said in a news release that officers took Christopher Cornelius, 54, into custody after he was found hiding in a nearby building. It remains unclear what connection he has to the victim, whom police have yet to publicly identify.
Cornelius, a San Bernardino resident, was booked into jail on suspicion of murder and is being held on $2-million bail.
At about 12:42 p.m., officers responded to 911 calls about a man with a weapon who allegedly was assaulting another man in the area of Wilshire and San Vicente boulevards. The men got into an argument for unspecified reasons, then one began striking the other with a metallic object, police said.
Witnesses also reported that the suspect used his vehicle to run the victim over.
Police arrived within two minutes of receiving the calls. After determining the suspect fled inside a nearby building, officers established a perimeter. Cornelius was arrested a short time later without incident.
The victim was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where he died of his injuries.
Homicides are exceedingly rare in the wealthy enclave, long synonymous with exclusivity and privilege. According to crime reports posted to the Beverly Hills Police Department’s website, the city’s last criminal homicide occurred in 2022. Other violent crimes such as robbery and serious assaults are also far fewer than in nearby jurisdictions.
Beverly Hills also ranks among the most surveilled cities in the world alongside London and Beijing, with a vast network of cameras — as well as drones and dozens of devices that can read license plates and automatically check them against law enforcement databases to find unregistered plates or stolen vehicles.
