Law enforcement is releasing more information about the homeless man accused of a random deadly stabbing at a South Coast restaurant.
The suspect, 49-year-old Jamal Jackson, was charged on Friday with first-degree murder in the death of 35-year-old Anthony Mele at Aloha Steakhouse in Ventura.
Police are now saying that Jackson had been in the area of the Ventura Promenade for several hours before the crime. The police department received a call just before 6:30 pm on Wednesday, reporting a man yelling and being disruptive. Command Center staff used the pier security camera to watch the behavior of the man – later identified as Jackson -- and determined that it did not appear to be disturbing or threatening, and they canceled the call for service.
Police say Mele was eating dinner with his wife and his five-year-old daughter on his lap when the suspect stabbed him in the neck, and he later died.