A 24-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder, mayhem and elder abuse for allegedly dousing a 68-year-old man’s head in gasoline and setting it on fire in an attack with no apparent motive, court records show.
Bradley Edward Marcrum, who has addresses listed in Berkeley and Los Angeles, was charged Thursday in connection with the June 29 attack.
The victim was hospitalized with serious burns, required skin grafts and surgery, but somehow survived the attack, authorities said.
The day before the attack, Marcrum was placed in a mental health hold in San Francisco after he threatened to jump off a building.
He was briefly hospitalized but released after a psychological evaluation determined he wasn’t a threat to himself or others, according to authorities.
The gasoline attack happened around 8 p.m. According to police, the 68-year-old man was sitting on a small brick wall near University Avenue and Bonar Street when Marcrum allegedly walked up, punched him twice and poured gasoline on his head.
The man told police that the next thing he knew, his head was on fire. Passersby helped extinguish the blaze and called 911, police said.
Police say the victim was unable to identify Marcrum from a photo lineup, due to his injuries.
Read More Here: Berkeley man’s head doused in gasoline, lit on fire in seemingly random attack
