Suspect Arrested For "Senseless Murder" of Ice Cream Vendor

A suspect has been arrested and charged with murder for the fatal shooting of ice cream vendor Jasvir Singh in East Oakland last month but the motive for the shooting remains unknown, Oakland Police Chief Sean Whent said today.

There’s no evidence that Singh, 45, was caught in crossfire or was robbed when he was shot at about 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 3 in the 9300 block of Peach Street on Oct. 3, Whent said.

Singh, who had sold ice cream in that area for many years, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Whent described the shooting as “a senseless murder.”

Joining Whent, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and FBI and U.S. Marshals officials at a news conference at Oakland police headquarters, Alameda County District Attorney spokeswoman Teresa Drenick said her office has charged 23-year-old Joevan Lopez of Oakland with murder and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.

Drenick said prosecutors allege that Lopez was convicted of a felony charge of being an accessory to a crime after the fact on May 1, 2012, and of being an ex-felon in possession of a firearm on Dec. 3, 2013.

Drenick said Lopez was a convicted felon who shouldn’t have had a gun. Whent said a warrant for Lopez was issued on Oct. 4 and he was arrested by a U.S. Marshals task forced inside his sister’s home in Stockton at 5 p.m. on Tuesday.

But Lopez has declined to talk to police so far, Whent said.

Oakland police Officer Jason Andersen wrote in a probable cause statement that several witnesses told investigators that the person responsible for the shooting was “J-Baby” and officers identified “J-Baby” as Lopez.

Andersen said witnesses who were shown double-blind sequential photo lineups subsequently identified Lopez as the shooter. Don O’Keefe, the U.S. Marshal for Northern California, said his office has developed a close relationship with Oakland police and has agency has arrested 105 violent Oakland fugitives so far this year, some of them in Oakland and some of them in other cities and states.

Lt. Roland Holmgren said Singh “was part of the community and people were heartbroken” when he was fatally shot. Whent said the fact that Singh’s death was “very tragic” might have prompted more witnesses than usual to come forward but added that Oakland police recently have been getting more cooperation from the community than they have in the past.

Lopez, who is being held without bail, was scheduled to be arraigned at the Wiley Manuel Courthouse in Oakland this afternoon.

According to Alameda County jail records, Lopez works as a custodian.

--Bay City News