An elderly California man accused of terrorizing his neighbors with a slingshot for nearly a decade died Wednesday, just days after his arrest and court appearance.
Police said Prince Raymond King, 81, was found dead inside his home in Azusa, California, around 7:30 a.m. Los Angeles Daily News.
The owner of the home where King was found is still unknown, but Azusa Police Sergeant Nick Covarrubias told the outlet that there was no “evidence of foul play.”
The local coroner’s office said King died from atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease – which damages the arteries that carry oxygen from the heart – and his death was ruled to be natural.
The gray-haired thug slowly walked into West Covina Superior Court for his arraignment Tuesday, where he pleaded not guilty.
King, who wears glasses, was accused of using a slingshot to smash metal ball bearings into neighbors’ homes and cars over the past nine years. ABC7 No. 7.
He was charged with five felony counts of criminal damage to property and two misdemeanor counts of criminal damage to property after he allegedly aimed a slingshot, a small, manually-fired weapon, at neighboring properties, shattering numerous home windows and car windshields.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office charged King with criminal damage to property for incidents ranging from October 2021 to May 2024. Los Angeles Daily News.
However, neighbours claim King’s slingshot attacks have been happening since 2015.
During the course of their investigation, police determined that the ball bearings belonged to the culprit and arrested the reckless neighbor on May 23rd.
Corporal Benjamin Seifer told the media that during the arrest, police found a slingshot and between 10 and 40 ball bearings in the suspect’s possession.
The slingshot vandal was released from custody after a hearing on Tuesday after his lawyer claimed he was suffering from multiple illnesses.
But while he was allowed to return home to pick up his medication, he was barred from staying at his home in Azusa, about 25 miles from downtown Los Angeles.
King was also instructed to stay at least 200 yards away from the homes he allegedly targeted and to have no contact with the victims, and was ordered not to possess any lethal weapon, including his trademark slingshot.
“We’ve been here since 2018. (It’s) been going on forever,” James Meade, one of King’s neighbors and an alleged victim, told the Los Angeles Daily News after King’s arrest.
“To me, other than the broken windows, it seems like a really nice area,” Mead said.
He was scheduled to appear in court again June 17 for a preliminary hearing.
