Man wanted in connection with Merced killing caught in Oakland. Arrest wasn’t easy

A man suspected in taking part in the killing of a Merced man was arrested in Oakland and brought back to Merced County Jail early Saturday, police said.

James Martin, 28, was arrested in Oakland after a vehicle pursuit that ended in a crash. Martin was with two other men who were arrested on charges not connected with the Merced homicide that took place on the 400 block of Tucolay Court on Friday morning.

Police are looking into whether the other two suspects are connected with the Merced homicide.

“We received some information that the suspects may be in Oakland,” Lt. Jay Struble said. “We put surveillance on their place in Oakland. We saw them get in the vehicle. Officers tried to make a traffic stop, which led to a pursuit and eventually ended in a crash.”

Martin was booked into the Merced County Jail at 4:19 a.m. He’s charged with first-degree murder.

The homicide happened in South Merced on Friday morning.

Witnesses said a group of men entered a home and stole items from inside, police said. “They came in shooting” said a resident of the home. “He went to check the door, there was some tussling and then gunfire.”

The witness, who asked not to be identified, citing safety concerns, claimed the men threatened to kill them before another resident told the intruders about the location of a safe. The intruders then took the safe and fled the scene, according to the witness.

The victim has not yet been identified by authorities.

This story was originally published January 26, 2019 at 11:35 AM.