Murder Suspect Pleads Not Guilty To Killing SFO Airport Worker

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, CA — A 34-year-old man pleaded not guilty Wednesday to a murder charge for killing a San Francisco International Airport worker apparently at random in South San Francisco earlier this week, San Mateo County prosecutors said.

Vincent Osegueda is accused of the vicious beating and possible strangling of 62-year-old Joseph Mendoza, who had been waiting at a bus stop at Airport Boulevard and Linden Avenue around 10 a.m. Monday to go to work at the airport, according to the district attorney's office.

Osegueda allegedly approached Mendoza and proceeded to wrestle him to the ground and beat and possibly choke him. A passing bus driver and someone else in the area saw the attack and called 911, prosecutors said.

Officers arrived and found Osegueda trying to hide Mendoza's body with dried leaves and ivy near a chain-link fence 25 feet away from the sidewalk. Osegueda had injuries to his knuckles and hands and declined to make a statement when he was arrested, prosecutors said.

The killing appears to be a random act of violence, according to the district attorney's office.

The county's Private Defender Program was assigned for Osegueda, who declined in court in Redwood City on Wednesday to waive his right to a speedy preliminary hearing. That hearing will take place on Aug. 20, and Osegueda remains in custody on no-bail status, prosecutors said.

• PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Homicide Arrest Made In South San Francisco

• ALSO SEE: Traffic Stop Ends In Stolen-Vehicle Arrest On Peninsula

--Bay City News