Woman Charged with Running Down Kiteboarding Shop Owner with Own Car

A woman was charged with murder last week for allegedly running down an Emeryville kiteboarding shop owner with his own car in Oakland in May, prosecutors said Thursday. Oakland police wrote in court documents that Ella Coleman, 24, admitted to running over and killing 47-year-old Royce Vaughn with his own car on May 29.

Police said Vaughn, the owner of KGB Kite-boarding, had hired Coleman as a prostitute. But when he got out of his 2013 Toyota FJ Cruiser in the 800 block of 28th Street, she allegedly jumped into the driver’s seat and ran him over, killing him.

She then allegedly fled in his car, which was later found abandoned in the 1400 block of 44th Avenue. Police put out pleas for information about the case, but it went unsolved for months. Coleman was arrested for a robbery and assault in August and was in Santa Rita Jail in Dublin when police connected her to the murder in December. She admitted the murder to police investigators on Dec. 8 and was charged on Dec. 23. She has a prior conviction for accessory to a crime in 2010, according to court records.

Jail records indicate Coleman remains in Santa Rita without bail and is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 11 to enter a plea in the case. KGB Kite-boarding continued operating after Vaughn’s death and held a memorial for him in June.

A post on the company’s Facebook page said, “This is a business that Royce built from the ground up, and with the help of our instructors and friends, we will attempt to keep Royce’s love and passion for Kite-boarding with us each day.”

By Bay City News

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