Gang rivalry may have sparked Beachwood gas station homicide in Merced County

A Merced man who law enforcement officials say is a known gang member pleaded not guilty to multiple charges, including murder and attempted murder, in Merced County Superior Court on Wednesday.

In addition to the murder charges, Marcus Balh Osby, 36, was also charged with shooting at an inhabited dwelling and child abuse, all felonies, according to court documents.

He is accused of killing 30-year-old Mark Vincent Straus, Jr., who law enforcement describe as a rival gang member, in a shooting outside a Shop-N-Go convenience store and gas station on Beachwood and Oakland Streets in the Beachwood area on the night of March 20.

Law enforcement found Straus dead and laying on the ground in the parking lot outside the store with a firearm next to him, according to the Merced County Sheriff’s Office report.

A pump at the gas station and one of the front windows of the convenience store were struck by bullets during the shooting, as were several cars parked across the street from the gas station.

A house near the gas station also suffered damage during the shooting — the exterior walls, bathroom window and walls inside the home were also struck by bullets.

A family that included two children in a nearby car witnessed the shooting, according to the report. The family is not named in court documents.

Medical staff at Mercy Medical Center in Merced later called law enforcement to tell them Osby checked into the emergency room with a gunshot wound, which was later confirmed to his right upper arm.

According to law enforcement, Osby’s wife accompanied him to the hospital and was sitting in a black Buick Lacrosse that had multiple bullet holes in the rear of the car and a shattered window.

She told law enforcement she was in the car during the shooting, but wouldn’t answer any more questions without an attorney present. That car was later towed as evidence.

Video surveillance footage law enforcement collected from the convenience store showed that the night of the shooting, four men who arrived in two different cars interacted with Straus outside the store. Osby then drove up and walked into the store, with Straus following him inside.

Osby then pulled a gun out of the waistband of his jeans and attempted to shoot Straus inside the store, according to court documents.

Straus then ran out of the store and Osby followed him. Deputies believe Osby shot Straus outside the store, where Straus’s body was later found, according to the police report. Gunfire was also exchanged between Osby and the other four suspects, deputies said.

Osby’s attorney, Barbara O’Neill, would not comment on Wednesday morning. The prosecuting attorney, Natalia Enero, also was not available Wednesday for comment. Osby’s next court appearance is scheduled for May 12.

This story was originally published May 4, 2022 at 11:41 AM.